Draymond Green has recently drawn a lot of criticism from across the NBA world for punching teammate Jordan Poole in the face. There is no doubt that this was an unacceptable action for him to take, and it has drawn condemnation even from his teammates.
The Golden State Warriors have not officially suspended Draymond Green yet, though the forward has claimed that he would step away from the team indefinitely to let the team “start their healing process”.
“I’m going to take a few days. Or I don’t know how many days. Just take some time to myself. Allow our team to start their healing process. But take some time to myself and get deep in my thoughts. Do things that I have to do to continue to work on me.”
Even though Draymond Green has voluntarily stepped away from the team, it seems as though some believe that he should get an official suspension. Raja Bell has recently claimed that he would have suspended Draymond Green immediately after the incident happened. (30:30)
I’m gonna come down on Draymond, “Draymond you know you fucked up. You know you messed up. And so you’re suspended for 10-15 [games]. That’s the price of doing business.”
“Jordan Poole, check this out; we sat him down, okay? We know you’re the future, we want this to work out. You gotta understand that we might have a window. His ass is suspended immediately. Effective immediately. For 15 games.”
And so you’ve done something that doesn’t leave everyone happy, but makes everyone feel like you’ve done something for them and I think that’s the sign of a good negotiation.
There is no doubt that this would have been a solid move for the Warriors, but it is a little bit too late for that now. However, Draymond Green is still going to end up being away from the team, and hopefully, he can use that time to work on himself and figure out a way to reconnect with the team.
The Golden State Warriors Are Not Trying To Move Draymond Green Despite The Incident
Despite the altercation between Jordan Poole and Draymond Green, it seems as though the Golden State Warriors are not currently trying to move Draymond Green. A recent statement by a Western Conference executive revealed that the team is not “pushing to move him right now”.
“He’s a tough guy to trade because you don’t know what he will be asking for contract-wise, and he has a skill set that fits what they do but not what everyone around the league does,” one Western Conference executive said. “They’re not out there pushing to move him right now. Never say never, but it would be pretty shocking if they changed course on that.”
It is not easy to trade away a player who is as identifiable with the Warriors as Green has become.
“It would send a tough message to Steph and Klay,” the exec said. “To an extent, you want to keep those guys happy even if Draymond can be a headache for you, and they would not be happy about trading him.”
Hopefully, we see Draymond Green figure out a way to regain his teammates’ trust, and eventually reconcile with Jordan Poole. He has a lot of tough work and self-reflection ahead of him.
There is no doubt that Draymond Green has been key for the Golden State Warriors during their dynastic run. However, despite his importance to the franchise, it is clear that the team is not giving him any passes on his poor conduct toward Jordan Poole.
