First Klay Thompson, now Draymond Green. This is the second-straight season where one of the Golden State Warriors' all-time legends have been pushed back into a bench role, albeit in vastly different circumstances.
Steve Kerr confirmed after Friday's loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves that Jonathan Kuminga will continue starting at the four, with Green now coming off the bench in a new role for the veteran forward.
Green went into great detail about the decision after Friday's loss, including a conversation with Kerr when the head coach brought the bench idea to the 4x champion.
"He (Kerr) wanted to know if I was okay with it...of course I'm okay with it,"Green told reporters while recalling his own ascension to a starting role ahead of David Lee over 10 years ago.
Green's awareness of understanding the situation and what the team needs deserves some plaudits, and it's not the first time in recent months that he's thought far beyond the remaining years of his own career.
The 34-year-old revealed in July that he pushed the front office out of making a trade, telling them that it would have been a bad one even if it was going to help himself and Stephen Curry in the short-term.
Green's response is of stark contrast to Thompson who was far less impressed with Kerr's decision to demote him to the bench ahead of a game against the Utah Jazz on February 15 this year.
"Thompson initially didn't take the news well. Kerr told ESPN that Thompson yelled at him and some of the assistants. Later, he came back to apologize to the coaches," Kendra Andrews wrote in a report.
If anything Green arguably deserves to be more upset with his move to the bench given it has nothing to do with his form. The 4x All-Star has been excellent for the Warriors so far this season, remaining one of the league's best defenders and shooting the ball at a career-high rate from 3-point range.
Whereas Green's move is all about giving Kuminga opportunity, Thompson's benching was largely down to his own poor form that had carried on for quite some months. For as a difficult as it was, he ultimately only had himself to blame.
Thompson responded and eventually earned his starting role back to close the season, including a 35-point performance in that initial game against the Jazz. However, there's no doubt that the uncertainty surrounding his role played a role in Thompson's decision to leave the only franchise he'd ever known and move to the Dallas Mavericks during the offseason.
This isn't to criticize Thompson's reaction per se, but to shine a light on Green's self-awareness and how the Warriors can now explore this move without potential locker room and chemistry issues that could have easily emanated.