As the Golden State Warriors' 2025-26 season came to an end in Phoenix after the Dubs fell in the Play-In Tournament to the Suns, Steph Curry and Draymond Green shared a moment with Steve Kerr on the sidelines. The trio has been together for 12 seasons now, winning four championships and experiencing an amount of success that most franchises haven't had in their entire existence.

Just a couple of minutes later, Green was ejected from the game for verbally sparring with Devin Booker, but that's beside the point. These three (and Klay Thompson before he left) are icons for the Warriors, and it wouldn't be surprising to see all of them honored in some longstanding way, whether it's with a jersey retirement, some sort of statue in Thrive City outside of Chase Center, or some other notable landmark.

However, that does beg the question: with Green at 36 years old and Curry at 38 years old, just how long do fans have to enjoy their greatness before they decide to hang it up and retire?

After the Play-In loss, Green made sure to shut down any possible rumors of his retirement.

"I'm not retiring from basketball. I still love to play. I think I'm still pretty decent."

After that emphatic quote, Green elaborated on how he views his future in Golden State, specifically.

"But this league we're in, it's an interesting one. It's one where you don't really control everything. For me, I hope I've done enough to still be here. At the end of the day, if I haven't done enough, I don't want to be here. I would never want it to be, 'Yo, we're just going to keep him around because of what he's done.' What can I still do? That's not just playing. That's leadership, that's helping bring the young guys along, that's helping move the organization forward. Hopefully I've done enough to still be here. But if not, we'll see what it looks like. It's been a hell of a run. I hope I've got higher and high enough in the meter of doing things. If not, then we'll see what happens next.  If the question is where I want to be, I think it's pretty obvious where the hell I'm going. They want me here, I'll be right here."

For many fans, especially those not in tune with the Warriors' every game, Green may not seem like a very high-quality player.

This season, the 14-year veteran averaged 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists while shooting just 41.8% from the field and 32.6% from beyond the arc. That's the fourth-worst efficiency from the field, the fourth-lowest assists average, and the third-lowest rebound average of his career.

In addition, Green only averaged 0.9 steals per game, the first time since his rookie season that he did not average at least one steal per game.

Despite all of this decline in the box score, though, Green was just as valuable on the court thanks to his elite defense and IQ. He showed it off in the fourth quarter of the Warriors' Play-In win over the Clippers, when he shut down Kawhi Leonard and came up with two huge steals in the final minute to win the game, along with many other moments this season where his defense, IQ, and leadership came through in the clutch.

For the legend that Green is to the Warriors' franchise, he's still definitely a valuable piece on the court even as he ages. Though his role may need to shrink to accommodate his health and extended capabilities, it's clear he can still bring positive contributions to the team.