Draymond Green Highlights Double Standard In Treatment Of NBA Players
Draymond Green is calling out the NBA’s double standards when it comes to the treatment of its players league-wide.
During his postgame news conference on Monday (February 15), the Golden State Warriors forward gave a three-minutes statement on the heels of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who faced off against the Warriors on Monday, deciding to sit center Andre Drummond until they find a trade to make.
"I would like to talk about something that's really bothering me," Green said after the Warriors' 129-98 win. "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 bulls**t."
ESPN reported Monday that the Cavs are looking to transition to new center Jarrett Allen. Green believes it’s “unfair to Drummond to limit his minutes as the organization transitions to Allen."
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He continued: "Because when James Harden asked for a trade, and essentially dogged it, no one's going to fight back that James was dogging it his last days in Houston, but he was castrated for wanting to go to a different team. Everybody destroyed that man. And yet a team can come out and say, 'Oh, we want to trade a guy,' and then that guy has to go sit, and if he doesn't stay professional, then he's a cancer. And he's not good in someone's locker room, and he's the issue."
Drummond and Green reportedly spoke prior to the game’s tip off on Monday. It’s unclear what the two discussed, however Green’s message was a pointed one at the postgame presser.
"And we're seeing situations of Harrison Barnes getting pulled off the bench," Green said. "Or DeMarcus Cousins finding out he's traded in an interview after the All-Star Game, and we continue to let this happen. 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."
Draymond Green has always been an outspoken critic when it comes to issues he feels passionate about. He was fined $50,000 for comments he made as a guest analyst for Turner Sports during the NBA restart in Orlando last season when he expressed his feelings that Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker should leave his team.
"At some point, as players, we need to be treated with the same respect," Green said. "And have the same rights that the team can have. Because as a player, you're the worst person in the world when you want a different situation. But a team can say they're trading you. And that man is to stay in shape, he is to stay professional. And if not, his career is on the line. At some point, this league has to protect the players from embarrassment like that."