Thank You, Bay Areaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Whew, this is not gonna be easy. 

I honestly don’t even know where to start. It’s like….

How do you say goodbye to a place that practically raised you in a lot of ways? A place that saw you go from a boy to a man? A place where you’ve made so many lifelong friends and experienced some of the best times imaginable? 

I have so much to be grateful and appreciative for over the past 10 years. This place, it’s truly changed my life forever. 

In some ways, I feel like I’ve been in the Bay so long that lots of people kinda forget that back when I got drafted by the Warriors, I was barely out of high school. Still just a kid, 19 years old. 

And looking back on that time now, I was pretty much the luckiest man in the world … when you think about what I walked into. 

Golden State had just beaten the Cavs to win a championship, so I knew we’d be good. But once I got to the Bay, I mean … what I saw? It was almost unreal. It was like I was living in some basketball video game where you can’t ever beat the computer.… 

And we were the computer. 

I had hip surgery before the season started, so I was out for a big chunk of that year, but I remember coming home from practices and talking with my folks, or friends back in Milwaukee and being like: “No joke, Steph … you don’t even understand. It’s insane. I’m pretty sure he’s the best player I’ve ever seen in my life.”

We lost nine games all season. 

Nine. 

Total. 

For the entire regular season, 73–9. Like are you kidding me?

Obviously I can’t take any credit at all for that excellence, but I can tell you that it was fun as hell to watch from up close. Steph and Klay and them, they like to say that I didn’t talk to anyone for the first six months. And I dispute that for sure. But I will admit that I only really started being myself after I saw Coach Kerr and Draymond screaming at each other during that game at OKC when Steph hit the half-court buzzer beater in OT. 

That was like four or five months into the season.  

Before that, there was no adversity. We would basically never lose, or really even come close to losing. There was nothing to get worked up about. No reasons to be fiery or passionate. And to me it was … weird. 

It was like everything was too perfect, you know what I mean? And that made me uncomfortable. Because I knew full well that me? Some young kid from Milwaukee? I was far from perfect. So I was walking on eggshells. Basically stayed keeping quiet.  

But when I saw Dray and Coach go at it that night? Saw them be human and show some raw emotion? Saw how much they cared, the fire? Everything kind of changed for me right then. That was the kind of thing I was used to with hoops. It was like….

OK, I’m home. 

After that, I opened up more, and Draymond took me under his wing, Andre, too. I was able to really be myself after that. 

I still can’t believe we lost in the finals that year, but that’s a whole ’nother story.  

Those first few seasons in the league, when I think back, the basketball was obviously great. But the setting? The setting!!!! You know what … that might have been even better.

Oracle. 

Or ROARacle! 

Either one. Whatever you wanna call it … that place was magical.  

You wanna talk about a special hoops venue? For my money … it doesn’t get any better than that.  

And look, Joe, don’t get me wrong. I love Chase Center. It’s great. Beautiful. I loved playing there. First-class everything. Don’t @ me. But Oracle? All those memories? Oakland? Those crowds? That NOISE? 

Oracle’s undefeated with me, for sure. It’s a shrine. Definitely the best arena I ever played in as far as a crowd goes, an energy. Playing there … it sounds weird to say it, but it was almost like that place was actually alive. Like it had a heartbeat. A personality. Like it was a living, breathing thing. 

People now, the young guys coming up, it’s like … they don’t even know. 

And it’s one of those things where it’s actually impossible to do it justice when you try to explain it. I can tell you it was special. But like….

It was a whole ’nother level of special. 

It’s almost like you had to be there, you know what I mean? And, if you were there — as I know a lot of you reading this were — it’s basically like I don’t have to say a thing. You already know.  

Those third quarters there, with Steph doing his thing and the crowd going crazy, it was like nothing I’d ever experienced before. Beyond loud. And then everyone would hit that WAAAAAARRIOOOOOORS!!! chant and, I mean … I’d get goosebumps. At some points, it was so live that I honestly remember kinda wishing I could’ve been in the stands, like up in the nosebleeds screaming my head off with the rest of the die-hards up there. 

And, yeah, I’m sure it helped that we were rollin’ at that point — I think my first couple of years, we lost like a total of six or seven games at home — but I truly believe that it was the people, those crowds, that made that place what it was. 

So, hell yeah … shout out to Oracle. 

And to all the old heads from back in those days who had that place rockin’ night in and night out, please just know…. 

I’ll never forget that atmosphere as long as I live.

In looking back on everything on my way out, I think the thing I’m most proud of when it comes to my time with the Warriors is the fact that I earned everything that came to me as a player.

No one gave me anything. I worked for everything. I earned my stripes. 

There were injuries early on. Then some growing pains. Trips back and forth to Santa Cruz. Lots of bench minutes, DNPs, you name it. But I never stopped working. Never stopped believing in myself.

I just needed to prove it to the coaches, and to the fans, and, most of all, to my teammates. 

And this may not be something that most people think about but, for real, it’s a whole different deal trying to prove yourself to a whole mess of Hall of Famers. It’s not like having to prove myself on a young team of guys straight out of school. It’s Steph and Klay and Dray and KD. Like, are you kidding me? Those are the guys I have to impress?

I really needed to elevate my game, elevate my mind, to get to that championship level. And that’s a scary thing to try and do as a young player. 

That year when we swept the Cavs in the finals, 2018, that’s when I feel like I finally reached that place. Earned that trust. That felt really good. It was special for me, knowing that I’d made a real impact during that playoff run. I was right in the mix during some big moments when our team’s legacy, our dynasty, was on the line. Make or break. 

And I’m not gonna lie: It was scary sometimes. I didn’t always know how things were gonna turn out. I’d look up, and I’m out there on an island with James Harden, and it was just like … go figure it out. But my coaches and teammates, they all trusted me to come through. Make or break.  

And I didn’t break. 

I’ll always be proud of that. 

After that? Once those guys and Coach Kerr and everyone else realized that they could trust me, that I was one of them? That’s when I feel like I really began to shine as both a player and a teammate. 

With Steve, especially, the confidence he instilled in me by speaking on my behalf and letting people know that he and the team valued me … that was massive. All the kind words he’s spoken about me during my career, they made me feel like I was invincible, like I could accomplish anything. He’s a legend, and his support meant the world to me.

I had to earn that support, of course. And the journey, that winding path I took over the years, it honestly wasn’t easy. Getting benched. Guys getting drafted and taking your minutes. Lineup changes. Falling out of the rotation sometimes. None of that is fun. But when you’re part of a culture where everything is about winning, and you’ve seen vets sacrifice in previous years, that mindset kind of takes hold. So, yeah, sure, if I’m being honest, I got frustrated sometimes, or was feeling bad, but … I’d just keep all that at home, and then come to work each day ready to help us win. 

To eventually get to a place where Steve viewed me as a leader and guys in the locker room felt like they could really depend on me, that they could come to me about anything … that probably means even more to me than what I’ve done on the court. Because the NBA, it’s a brotherhood, and that’s the kind of legacy that can make a difference into the future. It’s like, sure, I can rebound, I can set screens, but I want guys to really remember me as a good person, someone who had a positive impact on their lives. That’s what matters most to me. 

On the court, though, when it’s all said and done, I’m pretty sure that 2022 title run will be the season I’ll remember the most from my NBA career. Playing all 82 games. No nights off. Eighty starts. And now I’m doing it as one of the guys we really depended on. 

Most people … I’m pretty sure what they’re gonna remember about me from that playoff run is all the rebounds. Game 6 in Memphis, 22 boards or whatever. Another 18 to close out the Mavs in the conference finals. Just keeping plays alive whenever I could. Scrapping and grinding to get us an extra shot every possession. That’s probably my legacy from 2022.  

But, I’m not gonna lie, you know what I’ll remember most?

Game 2 against Dallas, at home in Chase Center. Third quarter. I’m at the line shooting free throws, and all of a sudden, out of nowhere, down from the rafters, here it comes….

As that’s happening, no lie, I’m basically like….

I’m confused.

I’d heard MVP chants from crowds a ton over the years. For Steph, or Klay, or KD, for a lot of different players. I’ve always had real MVP-type guys on my team. So I knew what I was hearing immediately. But I didn’t understand why the crowd was yelling it.

In my head I’m like: Is Steph about to check into the game? What's going on?

I definitely didn’t think it was for me. Like, seriously, that’s the kind of thing I dreamed of as a kid. It couldn’t be for me. But….

It was!

And when I realized it? I mean … that was an incredible moment right there. I’d gotten LOOOOOON chants before, which I absolutely loved. But MVP? For me? Come on now. 

That’s a moment I’ll never forget as long as I live. 

Thank God I sank the free throw, right? 

So now, leaving this place? Turning the page on … all of that stuff I just wrote down? On all those memorable moments?

I honestly don’t know how it’s gonna go from here, but I do know that no matter what, I’m going to miss being a Golden State Warrior. Miss our fans, the whole Bay Area.

This was not an easy decision for me. I know that I’ve had it good for the past 10 years, believe me. And year after year, any time free agency came up, I always said that if the money was even close, I’m gonna choose to stay. This time around, though, it wasn’t something where the Warriors made me a solid, competitive offer, and I would be able to pick between the two … or maybe give the Warriors a bit of a discount. That wasn’t even an option this time, unfortunately. That offer never really came. And look, I understand. It’s a business. And I’m excited to start a new chapter in New Orleans. It’s no hard feelings.

But it is some sad feelings. Some emotions.

At least on my end. 

Throughout my 10 years with Golden State, there was never a second when I wanted to be anything other than a Warrior. A lot of seasons, no lie, it’d be the trade deadline and I’d be at my house just absolutely sweatin’ it out. Just straight up looking at the clock every five minutes that afternoon. Hoping, praying, that the hands on my clock would magically move faster, and that my phone would never ring. That I wouldn’t have to go somewhere else.

And I never regretted not leaving, or not taking this or that offer that came up when I could’ve signed somewhere else in the past. I never once thought: Maybe I should’ve taken that other deal, or Maybe it would’ve been bette

No. Never! 

I knew full well that nothing anywhere else could ever top what I was experiencing as a Warrior. And a lot of that feeling was about everything off the court, about the people in the Bay Area. So I’m beyond grateful to everyone who made my time there so special.  

One of my favorite things about playing in the Bay was that people would always come up and talk to me everywhere I went. People didn’t just want a selfie or whatever, they actually wanted to talk. To converse. And I always appreciated that, being able to go chop it up with all different types of people. It basically felt like we were all next-door neighbors for the past 10 years. It made me feel like I was part of the community. That I was really one you guys. People out doing construction, or working on the roads in the city, or eating at a restaurant, seeing me and then running over to show some love and talk … that always made me smile. I can’t thank you guys enough for all the love you showed me and my family over the past decade. 

Even though I’m going somewhere else now, I can tell you for sure that everyone out here is still gonna be family to me forever. I’m Bay Area for life, no matter where I go.

And so, with that, I’ll leave you with what me, Steph, and Draymond said to each other when I called them last week to break the news.

Those were my first two calls. Those guys, they’ve been my big brothers for the past 10 years — showing me the ropes, guiding me, helping me to grow up. I relied on those two so much throughout my time as a Warrior. And especially when I first came into the league, I needed that guidance, that wisdom, the friendship. I’m not a big crier, but calling to tell them I’m heading somewhere else was pretty emotional for me, just to be real with you. It was like, I don’t know … I felt those conversations in my heart.   

I hope they know how grateful I am. How thankful.  

I hope you all know. Truly. Everyone in the Bay, and Warriors fans around the world.  

Because these past 10 years have been more than I ever could have dreamed of. 

So, yeah, before we hung up those phones, it was like…. 

“What a journey we all went on together!” 

“Ten amazing years.”

“It’s been one hell of a ride!”

Not every ending has gotta be a sad ending. 

I’m leaving the Bay with a huge smile on my face. 

Thank you for the ride.