Draymond Green refused to take this reporter’s condescending bait.
Draymond Green has an extensive reputation for sometimes taking things way too far on a basketball court. As such, it’s very fair to ask whether anyone with the Golden State Warriors is concerned about his availability moving forward if he’s going to keep losing his cool.
The thing is, you have to ask that question in the right, non-disingenuous way without seemingly trying to bait a narrative.
On Monday, during a press conference at Warriors media day, a reporter told Green that people (fans, teammates, etc.) were “worried about him.” Naturally, Green took great exception to this weird framing because it starts to sound like there’s more to worry about in his life than his occasional conduct in the extremely narrow scope of basketball. That’s just not the case.
As Green alludes, he’s a successful, wealthy Black man who will go down as one of the best players in NBA history. Why on Earth would anyone be “worried” about him?
Good for Green for refusing to take this silly bait.
Again, it’s one thing to ask him about people being concerned about his NBA availability because he could potentially get suspended and leave the Warriors shorthanded once more. That’s totally fair to ask for someone of Green’s on-court history, and it keeps it within the realm of the game. You also don’t have to get a perfect quote from him in this regard. A no-comment or curt answer is fine.
It’s another to ask this question in one of the most patronizing ways possible, as if Green, the basketball player, is in any way connected to Green, the man. Green rightfully shot this conversation down.
