When Draymond Green asked his Golden State Warriors teammate Klay Thompson for his “brutally honest” response on his repeated ejections this season, Thompson responded with a heartfelt “we just need you.”
A day after Thompson scored 32 points in the Warriors’ victory over the Utah Jazz at home, Thompson made an appearance on “The Draymond Green Show” to remind Green of the difference between his and the team’s success when he’s on the court and playing and when he’s getting thrown out and unhappy, which can affect his peer and ruin team chemistry.
It feels as though a portion of us is missing when you’re not around. Without you, we could never be who we are and enjoy the freedom we do on the court. I’m aware that the opposing team is relieved that you’re not playing. They can initially unwind a little bit, according to Thompson.
They are letting their hair down since our team’s vitality, our enforcer, that person, is no longer present. We’ve fought our way to the top of the mountain, been forced to retreat and then climb back up, and now we have one more chance to succeed. Ultimately, all we really need is you.
“And that feeling of disappointment and shaking your head stems from the realization that, really, we can’t accomplish this without you.” And without Money Green, we wouldn’t be the Warriors. That is merely a fact.
This season, Green has been shown the door four times already. The most recent one occurred last month on March 27, fewer than four minutes into the Warriors’ 101-93 victory over the Orlando Magic.
It was the power forward’s first ejection following his 16-game NBA suspension due to his history of misbehavior, which began on December 12 when he hit Phoenix center Jusuf Nurkic in the face.
At the time, the 33-year-old Green, who has played in four Warriors titles, was dismissed for the 18th time in his career, which is the most of any active NBA player. In November, he was also benched for head-locking Rudy Gobert of Minnesota; nevertheless, he was later suspended for five games.
Green’s departure from the 2022 NBA champions during training camp last season was a “mutual decision,” according to coach Steve Kerr, following the player’s forceful punch on former teammate Jordan Poole in the face. There were no injuries to either player.
Upon taking over as general manager of the Warriors following the conclusion of the previous season, Mike Dunleavy stated that he was dedicated to keeping Green. Shortly after, Green was awarded a new $100 million, four-year contract in late June. Although Kerr has consistently stated that he admires Green’s intense, boundary-pushing style of play, it will be intriguing to watch how both teams handle this most recent discipline.
After standing on Domantas Sabonis’ chest in a Game 2 loss against the Sacramento Kings in the previous spring, Green received a suspension for the Game 3 playoff victory. The Warriors achieved a historic feat by winning a playoff series despite falling behind 0-2 in the first place.
In November 2018, Golden State punished Green for one game due to his actions that were damaging to the club. When Kevin Durant called for the ball in the final seconds of regulation during the Warriors’ 121-116 overtime loss to the Clippers, Green grabbed a rebound and lost control as he dribbled the length of the court into traffic, preventing the Warriors from making a shot. Following Durant’s apparent outburst on television, the two got into an argument.
Green’s suspension for the pivotal Game 5 NBA Finals matchup against LeBron James and the Cavaliers in 2016 occurred because he had too many flagrant fouls during that season’s playoffs. In the end, the Warriors dropped all seven games. Green missed that game, so GM Bob Myers sat with him close to Oracle Arena at the Oakland Coliseum.
In 15 games this season, Green, a second-round draft choice out of Michigan State in 2012, is averaging 9.7 points, 5.8 assists, and 5.5 rebounds. He has recently stated on numerous occasions how much better the chemistry is this season. On draft day, Poole was sent to Washington in exchange for Chris Paul.
Green claimed that going to work was “not fun” and “hard.”
“We had a terrible team last year in terms of chemistry—pathetic,” he remarked. You think, “Ah man, this team hasn’t lost a Western Conference series under Steve Kerr,” when you consider the previous season. Then it takes place. Our bad chemistry is the main cause.