Draymond Green has been in the league for 14 seasons now. At this point in his career, most NBA players begin to think about their retirement plans. Turning 36 years old this coming March, Green’s post-playing chapter is rapidly approaching.
Questions have arisen about whether Green has considered coaching once his playing days conclude. The Golden State Warriors veteran recently expressed his thoughts on potentially becoming a coach after his days as an NBA player.
Draymond Green is Open to Coaching in the NBA
In a report for The Athletic, Nick Friedell noted that Draymond Green is now open to the idea of coaching in the NBA once his playing career concludes. In a recent interview, the Golden State Warriors veteran explained his initial perspective and how his view of coaching has evolved.
Green mentioned that he never considered coaching a career choice when he was younger. However, now that the end of his career is rapidly approaching, he’s begun to consider the idea.
“As I get closer to the end, I think a little bit more about it, and I’m definitely closer than I was a couple of years ago,” Green said. “If you would have asked me two years ago, I would have told you, ‘Hell no.’ But as you get closer to the end, you start to think, ‘Oh man, what is it that I really want to do?’ And I don’t know that it will — it’s not an absolute no anymore for me.
“Once you start to learn more about it and dig deeper into it, as you get older, you get closer to the coaching staff, and you start to see more. So I’m not gonna sit here and tell you, ‘Yes, I’m gonna coach when I’m done.’ But I won’t tell you no anymore.”
Green has had a Hall of Fame career despite being one of the NBA’s most polarizing figures. He has won four championships while serving as an enforcer, playmaker, and defender for the Warriors dynasty, and he earned Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2017.
“You play this game for all these years, and then you’re just done,” Green added. “Like, where does the knowledge go? What did you give back to those (young players) to keep it moving forward, to keep the game growing? That’s all a part of it. Do you just take the knowledge home with you, and it’s dormant forever? That’s always the interesting thing about sports to me, is like, you get older, you get less valuable. But the older you get, the more knowledge and information you have.”
Green has traits that could benefit the next generation of players, particularly in his playmaking and defense. He possesses what many consider “intangibles,” and it will be interesting to see how he passes them on.
