What If... Draymond Really Did Leave the Warriors?

As an employee, I know how it feels to be a Draymond Green.  Your performance in integral to the success of the team but, being one of less-popular stars, you don't get adequate credit, especially when it comes to number-crunching time.  Massa comes and tell you 'we can't pay you as much as you're actually worth, in the name of keeping the team  competitive', and you're like 'okay, do what you gotta do.'  And instead the organization being appreciative by pledging to make you right, their disposition appears more like 'you'd even be lucky if we offer you a better contract in the future.'

Draymond has lost a step or two, both physically and mentally, as to be expected of someone his age who has been competing at the highest levels of basketball his entire adult life.  In the past every time I tried to picture him on another team, I couldn't.  But then lately I've been like, wait a minute.  At 33 years old, he's still in the DPOY conversation.  The NBA right now is full of guys who can score their asses off but can't defend at the same level.  And it's also chock full of teams that don't have anyone on their roster with the brains and/or voice to actually implement offensive strategies.

Draymond, perhaps moreso than any other player in the NBA, is able to influence games with his tongue and theatrics.  Also, his main offensive contributions comes in the form of passing and setting screens, again, probably better than any other NBAer - and there are so many teams that can use those skillsets.  Steph and Klay are of course amazing shooters, with Curry especially being able to score sometimes with two defenders in his face.  But their percentages have been assisted throughout the years by Green's presence.

So, is it really true that he wouldn't be able to fit in elsewhere?  Is Green really that expendable that Golden State would be willing to pay stars that came to the team after him more?  Steph himself disagrees with that practice.

If PJ Tucker, who about to 38 years, is considered such an important cog in the Sixers' wheel, then how much more valuable is Draymond to GSW?  What would happen if you send Draymond to a team full of quality chucks like the Rockets, to help free up shooters and organize their offense?  How would Draymond fare playing alongside Damian Lillard, who's a de facto Splash Brother?  How would the Suns look with Draymond, now that they've given up Mikal Bridges (and Jae Crowder)?

CONCLUSION

These are the kinds of questions you have to ask yourself.  You have teams with all the firepower in the world, like the Mavericks, who can't go nowhere because of an inability to defend.  That's because defending on a noteworthy level is not easy and takes a lot of continuous effort.  There are superstars in the NBA who have managed to go their whole careers without being that committed to defense.  No one is afraid of Steph + Klay on the defensive end, and it isn't always about effort but also defensive talent (or awareness, as the videogames call it).

So it'll be interesting to see if the Warriors continue to devalue Draymond.  If so, I hope another worthy team out there who values his skillset would be willing to offer him a max contract - if even possible considering the new CBA - and poach him away.  And if it's a situation where the Warriors can't pay him the max even if they wanted to, I think it would still be interesting to maybe see him go to the Rockets for instance.  Force Andrew Wiggins or Jonathan Kuminga to modify their games more to focus on passing and setting rightful screens, and then maybe the Warriors will begin to realize how Green is arguably their most-valuable all-around player.