Forward Draymond Green signed his five-year, $82 million deal to remain with the NBA champion Golden State Warriors on Thursday.
“This is home for me,” he said. “At no point did I feel I was ready to leave this organization.”
Green and the Warriors had reached agreement on the deal last week; the Warriors were determined not to let the restricted free agent leave.
Other teams could have offered Green a max deal of four years, $67.3 million; the New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons and Dallas Mavericks were thought to be interested. The Warriors could have matched any offer, but Green didn’t want to leave anyway.
“I think I’m a pretty good player,” he said, “but none of that matters if you’re not in the right organization.”
Green, who replaced David Lee in the lineup last season and put up a triple-double in the NBA Finals, did a little bit of everything for the Warriors. He averaged 11.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists and finished as runner-up to Chicago Bulls guard Jimmy Butler for the NBA’s Most Improved Player award and second in voting for Defensive Player of the Year (Kawhi Leonard of the San Antonio Spurs won).