Warriors’ Draymond Green blasts double standard of player movement in NBA
Draymond Green blasts double standard of player movement in NBA originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
After the Warriors’ 129-98 win over the Cavaliers on Monday night, forward Draymond Green spoke up about the double standard regarding trade demands from players and teams after Cleveland decided to sit Andre Drummond until they find him a new home via trade.
“I would like to talk about something that’s really bothering me,” Green said postgame. “And it’s the treatment of players in this league. To watch Andre Drummond, before the game, sit on the sidelines, then go to the back, and to come out in street clothes because a team is going to trade him, it’s bullshit.”
Green’s unprompted three-minute press conference monologue contrasted Drummond’s situation to James Harden and Anthony Davis, who were both ridiculed by fans and media for their very public trade demands. Both got what they wanted as they landed at their preferred destinations of Brooklyn and LA, respectively, but both players’ characters and loyalty were questioned in the process.
Green also brought up a couple of his former Warriors teammates, Harrison Barnes and DeMarcus Cousins, and their experiences with the harsh business side of the league.
“And we’re seeing situations of Harrison Barnes getting pulled off the bench. Or DeMarcus Cousins finding out he’s traded in an interview after the All-Star Game, and we continue to let this happen,” Green said. “But I got fined for stating my opinion on what I thought should happen with another player, but teams can come out and continue to say, ‘Oh, we’re trading guys, we’re not playing you.’ And yet we’re to stay professional.”
Green was fined $50,000 in August for tampering after he said Suns shooting guard Devin Booker should leave Phoenix and also pointed to Davis’ fine for the same amount for his agent Rich Paul publicly demanding a trade from the Pelicans. He contrasted that to teams being able to publicly state their trade intentions for players like Drummond and Griffin, and the clear double standard that shows.
“As players, we’re told to, ‘Ah, no, you can’t say that, you can’t say this,'” Green said. “But teams can? It goes along the same lines of when everyone wants to say, ‘Ah, man, that young guy can’t figure it out.’ But no one wants to say the organization can’t figure it out. At some point, the players must be respected in these situations, and it’s ridiculous, and I’m sick of seeing it.”
Wizards star shooting guard Bradley Beal reposted SportsCenter’s Instagram post of Green’s speech on his story, showing his approval for Green’s message. Beal, who’s dealt with plenty of trade rumors himself, had just helped his Wizards teammates defeat the shorthanded Rockets in the return of John Wall, the former Wizards star who was traded before the season’s start, to Washington.