Danny Green had no plans to return to Raptors, report says
Green had said publicly he would be open to returning to the Raptors, but a report said he told the team he would not be back.
Published : Jul 10, 2019 12:09 IST
After helping the Raptors win their first NBA championship last month, Danny Green said he would "like to be back in Toronto."
Some assumed the swingman's decision would be based on whether Kawhi Leonard returned to Toronto. But a report by Dallas Morning News suggests Green told Toronto he would not return, no matter what Leonard decided. "Danny Green told [the] Mavs he was not returning to Toronto, even if Leonard came back to [the] Raptors. His choices always were [the] Lakers or Dallas," the report stated.
Leonard, of course, agreed to a four-year, USD 142 million deal with the Clippers. Moments after that news broke last weekend, Green announced in a video on social media he would sign with the Lakers, a two-year deal reportedly worth USD 30 million.
'Fun time'
"I had a fun time in the city of Toronto, love the organisation," Green said, in part. "Thank you guys. Thank you to my team-mates. Thank you to the fans. Always have a great place in my heart. Never forget obviously the historic run we had."
The report also noted that even if Green had signed with the Mavericks, the team would have still pursued Delon Wright. The Mavs acquired the guard on Monday from the Grizzlies in a sign-and-trade for two future second-round draft picks and the draft rights to Satnam Singh.