Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green has gotten into plenty of wars of words over the years, and his latest feud is with former NBA player Austin Rivers. This all began when Green claimed that Warriors head coach Steve Kerr had hindered his NBA career by not running plays for him.
One thing led to another, and we have now seen Rivers go on a sensational rant about Green on Instagram after being called out by the four-time All-Star.
“This is ridiculous,” Rivers said. “Seriously. Ridiculous. But you know what? I’m going to address it because you crossed the line and you are mad disrespectful for whatever reason. You’ve been around too long. We both were drafted in the same class. The fact that you don’t have the wherewithal to do your due diligence and actually understand I was being highly complimentary of you on the Dan Patrick Show, but it’s you, and I shouldn’t be surprised.”
Rivers says he wasn’t trying to disrespect Green when he reacted to the comments about Kerr on the Dan Patrick Show. He had said he couldn’t understand how someone so smart would say that about Kerr. He made it clear that the Warriors forward was never an offensive juggernaut.
Rivers pointed out teams leave Green wide open, but his IQ has led to him taking advantage of that by being a free screener. He added that he is the Warriors’ emotional leader and a dominant defensive player.
Host Dan Patrick then mentioned that Green wouldn’t be a Hall of Famer if another team had drafted him. Rivers agreed, but stated that was not a slight, as he will be in the Hall of Fame someday. He just couldn’t get why Green would say this about Kerr when he’s a big reason why he’ll end up in the Hall.
Rivers’ words were taken as disrespect. Green ripped him to shreds on The Draymond Green Show. He pointed out they had averaged the same number of points in high school and that his NBA career was far better.
Green then twisted the knife even further by claiming that Rivers getting $42 million from his father, Doc Rivers, was one of the biggest bailouts in U.S. history. That was him referring to the elder Rivers signing his son when he was head coach and president of basketball operations for the Los Angeles Clippers and then giving him another contract. It’s not a surprise that the younger Rivers felt compelled to speak out after all this.
“You always act irrationally, emotionally immature, and your anger always puts you in hot water,” Rivers stated. “So here I am having to address a video of you belittling my career. First off, Draymond, we weren’t the same players in high school. I don’t care about our numbers being similar. I did it at the national level, the top level.
“Hence why I got the Naismith Award, and I got pretty much every award you could think of in high school,” Rivers added. “I was ranked No. 1. You were ranked, I don’t know. So cut it out. Next, college, you were actually a really good college basketball player, but it’s hard to compare because I was only there for six months, something you could never do. Talk about I was one of the featured guys. No, I was the guy. I led my team in scoring. I was first-team All-ACC, Freshman Player of the Year, lottery pick. Stop.”
Rivers then acknowledged that Green has him beat when you compare their time in the NBA. He once again called him a Hall of Famer, but was quick to point out that he has been incredibly fortunate.
“The irony of you saying I’m part of the biggest bailout in NBA history, Draymond, you were the luckiest basketball player I think I’ve ever seen,” Rivers said. “Especially in modern-day history. Let’s talk about that. You were drafted to a franchise with a Hall of Fame front office, Bob Myers, Hall of Fame coach Steve Kerr, the greatest shooter of all time and perhaps a top five player of all time, Steph Curry, Hall of Famer.
“One of the greatest shooters, top five shooter of all time, another Hall of Famer, Klay Thompson,” Rivers stated. “The Swiss Army Knife himself, the guy who could do a little bit of everything on the floor, Andre Iguodala, another Hall of Famer. I know, keep up, it’s a lot of talent. Not to mention one of the most lethal scorers of all time and arguably a top 10 player of all time, Kevin Durant.
“The same guy you chased off because of this, your mouth, you talk too much,” Rivers continued. “And that’s not even counting the plethora of talent around those guys. The Sean Livingstons, the [Leandro] Barbosas, the Andrew Wiggins, the Jordan Pooles, who you also chased off. Cut it out. Draymond, you’re the backpack jump shooter. You’re the guy that everyone leaves open. No one guards you.
“There are hours and hours and hours of film of just you being left wide open,” Rivers added. “In fact, anybody can just YouTube or Google or watch any Draymond game ever, and he’s open all game. There are clips of you getting a rebound and just driving in a straight line and just getting a wide open layup because everyone’s fanning out to guard the actual talent on the team. Talk about Steve Kerr hindered your career.
“Bro, Steve Kerr made your career,” Rivers said. “How dare you? Coming at me? Are you kidding me? ‘I wish I could give my son $200 million if I was a coach.’ Yo, the NBA doesn’t give coaching jobs to guys who may or may not sucker punch one of the players and staff.”
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This, ladies and gentlemen, might just be the greatest clap back we have seen in a very long time. Green is sure to fire back, though, and it will be interesting to see what he has to say.
