Warriors Veterans Growing Tired With Draymond Green's Outbursts
Following Kevin Durant and Draymond Green's argument during Monday night's game, Green's outbursts are starting to feel old to some in Golden State.
According to Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix, several Warriors veterans are getting tired of Green's actions.
"Green can be a polarizing figure," writes Mannix. "He’s the soul of the franchise, respected by teammates and coaches alike. But the drama he creates can be exhausting, and over the last two years some Warriors veterans have privately grumbled about the frequency with which Green has to be reigned in. His passion is one of his greatest strengths, and doubles as a glaring weakness."
Monday's argument between the Warriors stars started when Green grabbed a rebound off a Clippers miss with six seconds left but didn't pass the ball to Durant, who was calling for it on the way upcourt. Green kept the ball but ended up turning the it over with a chance to win the game. The two players got into an argument on the bench and had to be calmed down by teammates.
The spat reportedly continued in the locker room after the game, with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Marc J. Spears calling it "one of the most intense" scenes in this era of Warriors basketball.
Golden State suspended Green without pay for Tuesday night's game against the Hawks following the argument. When asked after the game, Durant said he thought things would get better between him and Green.
"I'm sure it will," Durant said. "We've got a long season ahead."
On Thursday, Green expressed a similar sentiment when addressing reporters at a shootaround.
"We're not going to crumble off an argument," Green said, per ESPN's Nick Friedell.
Despite the recent unrest in Golden State, Mannix also doesn't predict it will derail another successful season for the Warriors.