On opening night of his 15th NBA season, Draymond Green, generously listed at 6-foot-6, was slotted as the Golden State Warriors’ starting centre, despite the organisation’s continued understanding of the accumulated toll it takes on his 36-year-old body.
The Warriors’ staff gave Green a physical reprieve two nights later against the Memphis Grizzlies’ jumbo front line. However, circumstances, including Al Horford‘s inability to play bigger minutes in his 20th season, forced Golden State to start Graham Ike, a two-way undrafted centre out of Gonzaga, in only his second career game.
That still left Green on the floor in the late, decisive moments, attempting to box out the 7-4 Zach Edey. After failing to wall him off on a defensive rebound, Green committed a crucial frustration foul as the Warriors blew a 12-point lead and fell to 0-2 for the first time since 2020-21.
“We got what we got,” Green said when asked about the eroded state of the Warriors’ centre position. “So we got to make it do what it do.”
Team sources say the Warriors believe part of the reason for their 37-45 record a season ago was a woe-is-me attitude about the schedule and injury misfortune. As a result, they have taken a purposeful, no-excuse approach this regular season.
That approach has meant an out-of-sight, out-of-mind strategy regarding the ongoing absence of presumed starting centre Kristaps Porzingis, who was re-signed this summer despite missing 90 games over the past two seasons with three different teams. Ever since Porzingis stayed away from work one day before training camp, the front office has instructed Steve Kerr to strategise and prepare the team as if Porzingis were a non-factor.
General manager Mike Dunleavy and lead medical decision maker Rick Celebrini are the only members of the staff who have been in communication with Porzingis during his absence. Kerr has bristled at nearly every Porzingis question in recent weeks.
“I don’t know,” Kerr said when asked for a recent update. “I don’t really have anything else to add on this.”
The decision to make a $20 million commitment to the now-invisible Porzingis this offseason looms large over their 1-3 start and their murky path forward. On opening night, the same day that reports emerged that the Warriors had begun exploring possible trade routes while Porzingis weighs his basketball future, opposing centre Walker Kessler dunked on them 10 times, the most in a game by a Los Angeles Lakers centre since Shaquille O’Neal in 2003.
In the aftermath, the always diplomatic Stephen Curry was asked about the unfortunate nature of Porzingis’ indefinite absence and its impact on the team.
“Aggggh,” Curry said, tapping on the table as his frustration seeped through. “It’s a hard one for all reasons.”
Curry twice made sure to mention the human element, expressing sympathy for Porzingis, who has spoken publicly about the lingering effects he still feels after contracting an upper respiratory viral illness while with the Boston Celtics two seasons ago.
“We always said availability was a big factor for our team with all the guys we have out,” Curry said. “It’s no secret that the [centre] spot is an important one for us, especially with his skill set. It’s hard to talk about without keeping the humanity of it in mind. But it is a tough one to figure out.”
Team sources continue to express an extreme level of pessimism that Porzingis will ever play for the Warriors again. However, his contract, which is only guaranteed for $3 million next season, could still prove valuable in executing a trade.
Here is everything we know as the situation remains in limbo.
How did Porzingis and the Warriors get here?
Porzingis’ current salary slot was created during the summer of 2025, during one of the strangest restricted free agency standoffs in recent memory. Dunleavy and the Warriors were uneasy about committing long-term to Jonathan Kuminga, but felt he still held more value and upside than the sign-and-trade offers on the table.
So they stood firm in negotiations and eventually compromised with Kuminga on a two-year, $46.8 million deal. It included a team option and a requirement that Kuminga waive his implicit no-trade clause. The Warriors were hopeful he would contribute, but they made their motives clear enough during negotiations that Kuminga’s side felt he was being turned into a human trade exception.
The Warriors then traded his contract to Atlanta for Porzingis’ expiring $30.7 million contract in February. This maintained their salary flexibility and reflected a belief that they could manage Porzingis’ health well enough to get some production out of him.
It worked reasonably well. Porzingis appeared in 15 of the team’s last 20 games and averaged 16.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks. That gave the front office and medical staff enough confidence to approve a two-year, $40 million extension in late June, for a player who expressed a desire to continue his NBA career.
Still, the Warriors built in protections for a move they knew carried major risk. They guaranteed only $3 million of the $20 million salary in the second season. They also structured the extension so Porzingis could be traded immediately, rather than having to wait until 15 December.
Dunleavy and the Warriors nonetheless believed Porzingis would be an available rotation piece for chunks of the schedule, not merely a tradable contract. There was pre-camp buzz from the coaching staff about the intriguing prospect of a Yaxel Lendeborg, Green and Porzingis front line.
Porzingis was in the practice facility getting court work the week before training camp and attended Jimmy Butler‘s player-led event in San Diego in late September. However, optimism faded when team sources in attendance described him as indifferent and uninterested in taking part in scrimmages and strenuous on-court preparation at the event, a clear warning sign of what was to come.
What are the Warriors’ options with Porzingis?
Porzingis called Dunleavy and stepped away from the team on the eve of training camp, citing what the club considered a private health matter. The Warriors gave him some space initially, but expected him to return to the facility and be around his teammates and the medical staff, team sources said.
After a meeting with Celebrini and Dunleavy in early October, the team issued a statement declaring he would be around. That did not last. Porzingis has not returned to the facility, and the organisation changed his official status from out with “general illness”, as they had listed during his absences last season, to “not with team”. This was a purposeful change. The absence can no longer be described as excused.
Porzingis’ unwillingness to be present at the facility could be deemed a failure to render his services, a reality that has been raised internally, sources said. That could be used in an attempt to void his entire contract. However, that would bring its own complications, unless Porzingis expressed an intention to retire and willingly returned all of the money.
The Warriors are currently $20.4 million over the luxury tax line. Wiping away Porzingis’ salary would erase nearly all of their tax bill, take them under the first apron and give them more trade flexibility. However, it would not free up a major roster-building tool. They would only be able to add a player on the minimum via free agency.
The Warriors faced a similar situation two seasons ago. They signed De’Anthony Melton to a one-year, $12.8 million deal in July 2024. He tore an ACL in early November and was ruled out for the season.
In response, Dunleavy lined up a trade with the Brooklyn Nets for Dennis Schröder, to be executed on the first day Schröder was eligible to be traded, 15 December. It cost the Warriors a net of two second-round picks. Schröder played 24 games for Golden State before being traded as part of a deadline deal to acquire Butler.
That would profile as the preferred route for the Warriors in this Porzingis predicament: using a minor asset to acquire a usable rotation player in the interim, while keeping the flexibility to repackage that expiring salary for a larger swing at the deadline.
However, under the new anti-tanking rules, there are no obvious trade partners ready to part with a usable player for a minor asset, especially in late October. Dunleavy has already gauged the temperature of the trade market, league sources said, but this is traditionally a quiet period. Front offices are typically in fact-gathering mode about their rosters before making bigger-picture decisions closer to January and February.
For now, the Warriors are showing a willingness to remain patient with the Porzingis contract and let the market develop, league sources said. If Porzingis proves willing to give back a large chunk of money in a buyout, his expiring $20 million deal could become even more financially appealing to a trade partner seeking financial benefit.
What is the Warriors’ plan in the interim?
Lendeborg’s immediate success has brightened the mood and eased some concern around the Warriors. The rookie wing scored 31 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and handed out six assists in a surprising blowout win in Denver on Monday night.
Lendeborg’s power and size (6-foot-10, 241 pounds) has allowed the Warriors to play Green at centre while still feeling bigger than in their previous small-ball lineups. Lendeborg has 37 rebounds in four games.
Their current starting lineup of Lendeborg, Green, Curry, Brandin Podziemski and Gui Santos is a plus-22 in a small early-season sample. Horford, limited to around 20 minutes per game and unable to play back-to-backs, has looked fresh in brief doses.
While evolving through a semi-rebuild, the Warriors have shown an increased willingness to give opportunities to their younger players, in an effort to unearth some gems and improve their long-term outlook.
Ike has started two of the first four games, but will be limited to 50 games in total unless the Warriors convert his two-way contract into a full deal. Charles Bassey, the 25-year-old journeyman attempting to catch on with the Warriors after five previous stops, provides another big body off the bench.
“I love the attitude of this team,” Kerr said. “I love the energy, the spirit. I like our talent. Then I think our two young big guys are good players.”