Four-Time NBA Champion Has Message To Older Generation

Shandel Richardson | Feb 17, 2025

Isiah Thomas and John Salley try to set up live video on a phone before they walked out of the tunnel for the 30th anniversary of the 1989-90 back-to-back championships at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Saturday, March 30, 2019. 03302019 Pistons Halftime 14 / Junfu Han, Detroit Free Press

NBA great John Salley had the luxury of winning titles with three different teams.

In a recent interview, Salley also sent a message to players from era to stop criticizing today's players. Here's what he had to say:

"I'm tired of all the older guys saying these guys couldn't play in our day," Salley sayd. "We couldn't play in this day. No way ... We couldn't do this. The way they're playing now, we couldn't play."

NBA GREAT CALLS OUT DRAYMOND

It wasn't a surprise Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green had a strong opinion on something NBA-related.

This time, he received a strong response from an NBA legend. During All-Star weekend, Green said today's league is boring.

“Every possession is some type of chess move,” Green said. “You don’t get that today in the NBA, often. ... You don’t just get that on a regular basis. It’s just who can run faster, who can hit more 3s, it’s no substance. I think it’s very boring.”

That prompted Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson to take aim at Green.

"Who cares what Draymond says," Robertson said. "It doesn't mean anything. This is what I mean. One guy can say this and one guy can say that. People either like the game or they don't."

Robertson took it a step further by saying Green is bored because he is playing alongside one of the best players in NBA history. Robertson suggested Green spends most games handing out assists to Stephen Curry, who is perhaps the best shooter the league has ever saw.

"It might be boring to him," Robertson said to SiriusXM NBA radio. "If he's not passing the ball to Curry, what is he doing? "Not to single that out because I think he knows how to play basketball, but he's passing the ball to Curry than I've ever seen in basketball."

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day NBA On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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