After Klay Thompson‘s departure from the Warriors, people already knew Stephen Curry would not be happy. But what about Draymond Green? Popular belief in the rumor mill is that Green was partially responsible for his exit after Green said, “Klay tore his ACL. They paid him $160 million.” This allegedly angered Thompson. However, Green has now come clean about his thoughts on Thompson’s exit.

The Warrior said, “Needless to say, I said all of that to say. I’m happy as hell he’s gone. The reason I’m happy he’s gone is because he wasn’t happy no more. As a brother, I only want what’s best for you, not what’s best for me, not what’s best for this team, not what’s best for this organization.”

However, this doesn’t mean that the 34-year-old was not sad. One of the greatest trios in NBA history was separating. So fans and Green, initially, couldn’t help but mourn it. But now, Green has had quite some time to think about it and it looks like he has accepted it.

“We spent so much time around each other, as you know. You spend more time around these guys than you than you do your family. And to see him unhappy like the way I saw him unhappy last year… He was uneasy, like just bothered … To see someone who does not have a single care in the world, all of a sudden, can’t shake nothing. That bothered me,” Draymond Green said on the Club 520 podcast.

For Green, seeing Thompson bothered was much more painful than seeing him leave.

Interesting Fact: Green, Thompson, and Curry have played 12 seasons together. They are the second trio in the NBA’s history who played together for so long and trail behind San Antonio’s Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobili, who played together for 14 seasons.

So what happened to Klay Thompson? Why is he a shadow of someone he once was? Well, he has dealt with some troubling seasons in a row. After his ACL injury in 2019, the Splash Brother fought his way back to fitness but couldn’t keep up his elite shooting numbers. Not saying that his current stat line is bad, but he set that high bar for himself. KT recorded the lowest ppg. (17.9) in the 2023-24 season since his rookie years and was visibly upset with his benching last season.

His contract situation did this whole saga no favors. He asked for a new contract with compensation that he felt he deserved, especially after seeing Draymond Green get a $100 million deal. But things didn’t work out, and that remains a sad tale that all the Warriors faithful will tell their grandchildren decades from now. But is the dynasty coming to an end?

Draymond Green reveals advising Joe Lacob against a recent trade deal

With the definitive end of the Splash Brothers era, it is time for the Splash Buddies with GSW’s acquisition of Buddy Hield. But will this stop the Bay Area franchise from making further moves in the market?

With the limited window of Steph Curry’s prime still left, their Championship hopes look like a long shot. There have been constant links between the Dubs and Lauri Markkanen, but until now that deal, considering Utah’s hope of a rich youthful acquisition, looks far from going over the line.

With all this going on, Draymond took it upon himself to provide some behind-the-scenes updates on the Warriors’ trade planning. He spilled the beans about seemingly halting the franchise from a certain decision. “We was just about to make some trades last week and I told them straight up, ‘That trade will help me.’ It’ll help me in my career these last couple of years with (Curry). But I’ve always spoken from a place of, ‘What’s best for this organization?’ I won’t stop now. ‘That’s a bad trade. Don’t do that trade. I disagree with it although it’s going to help me right now,'” the 4x NBA Championship winner revealed.

Though he did not mention any specific name, judging by comments, it could’ve been about the Lauri Markkanen deal. The Finnish star can be the cornerstone of the post-Curry and Klay Thompson era for the Warriors and would surely take a lot of pressure off Draymond Green in the frontcourt.

Who do you think should GSW should target next to fill the Klay Thompson-sized void? Should they go ahead with Markkanen, who has no playoff experience? Or trust the likes of their young guns Brandin Podziemski and Jonathan Kuminga to take charge? Share your view in the comments.

For more interesting content by EssentiallySports, watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where the prodigy puts Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr under the pump with loaded NBA questions and more in this video below.