Steve Kerr is asking Draymond Green for a favor the Warriors star once requested from him: patience.
Green thanked Kerr during their postseason exit meeting for remaining patient with him through years of emotional swings, confrontations and suspensions. With Golden State entering a transition season, the coach now wants that patience returned.
“He’s going to have to adapt a little bit, and it’s probably going to be a little frustrating at times,” Kerr said on the “Tom Tolbert Show.” He added that he would need Green’s patience.
Part of the adjustment could involve Green accepting a reduced offensive role, cutting down his turnovers and continuing to shoot open 3-pointers. The more delicate challenge may be tolerating the growing pains around him.
With Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody expected to miss much of the first half, Kerr said Golden State must rely on its entire roster, potentially including two-way players. Rookie Yaxel Lendeborg, Gui Santos and Brandin Podziemski are among those expected to carry more responsibility until the veterans return.
Kerr praised Lendeborg’s maturity and believes the Warriors’ depth can “hold down the fort.” That approach will inevitably produce uneven nights, however, and Green has never been known for quietly accepting mistakes or insufficient effort.
His combustible history gives Kerr’s request additional weight.
Green verbally unloaded on Kevin Durant during an infamous 2018 loss to the Clippers, an altercation that led Golden State to suspend him. Durant left for Brooklyn the following offseason, and both players later criticized how the organization handled their dispute.
Four years later, Green punched Jordan Poole during a preseason practice. The incident hung over Golden State’s disappointing title defense before Poole was traded to Washington the following summer.
Neither departure can be attributed entirely to Green. Durant already had complicated reasons for leaving, while the Warriors had basketball and financial motivations for moving Poole. Both episodes nevertheless demonstrated what can happen when Green’s competitive fury overwhelms the patience required inside a locker room.
The Warriors now need the 36-year-old to adjust his own responsibilities while guiding teammates who will occasionally miss rotations, overlook open reads or fail to match his urgency and intensity.
Whether Green can navigate that contradiction could determine more than Golden State’s early-season record.
Warriors insider Marcus Thompson II has suggested a poor start could force the franchise to confront an outcome once considered unthinkable.
“Draymond could be traded at the trade deadline,” Thompson said.
Green is playing on a one-year contract, while Stephen Curry remains untouchable and Jimmy Butler offers more upside if he returns to his pre injured form. If the experiment fails, moving Green could become the clearest signal that Golden State is finally dismantling what remains of its dynasty.
Kerr is asking for patience. By February, the Warriors may know whether Green has enough of it — and whether the organization has any left for him.
