Getty Draymond Green reacts to a play in an NBA game.
Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver is in hot water for allegedly promoting a toxic workplace culture throughout his organization. An exclusive ESPN report on the story begins with racist comments involving Golden State Warriors‘ forward Draymond Green.
Former Suns head coach Earl Watson told Baxter Holmes, of ESPN, that Sarver made the comments about Green in the locker room after Watson’s third game at the helm in Phoenix back in late October of 2016.
“You know, why does Draymond Green get to run up the court and say (N-word)?” Sarver allegedly asked Watson, based on details in Holmes’ report published online Thursday, November 4.
According to Watson, the Suns owner, who is of Caucasian descent, then repeated the racial slur several times.
“You can’t say that,” Watson reportedly told Sarver.
“Why?” Sarver allegedly responded. “Draymond Green says [N-word].”
“You can’t f****** say that,” Watson, who is of Black and Hispanic descent, repeated to the Suns owner.
Employees Accuse Sarver of Pattern of Toxic Behavior in ESPN Report
GettyJames Jones, general manager of the Phoenix Suns.
According to Holmes’ story, for which he said he interviewed more than 70 current and former employees of the Suns organization, Sarver has been accused of promoting “…a toxic and sometimes hostile workplace” in Phoenix.
Other examples of Sarver’s alleged misbehavior include “racially insensitive language” used “repeatedly in the office,” as well as misogynistic conduct “… including Sarver once passing around a picture of his wife in a bikini to employees and speaking about times his wife performed oral sex on him.”
Along with the Suns, Sarver is also the owner of the WNBA franchise the Phoenix Mercury.
“The level of misogyny and racism is beyond the pale,” a Suns co-owner was quoted as saying about Sarver in the ESPN report. “It’s embarrassing as an owner.”
However, other members of the Phoenix Suns organization, including those of racially diverse descent, came to the owner’s defense in the wake of the story.
“None of what’s been said describes the Robert Sarver I know, respect and like – it just doesn’t,” Suns general manager James Jones, who is Black, said of Sarver in a statement released on the team’s official website.
Sarver also came to his own defense.
“I am wholly shocked by some of the allegations purported by ESPN about me personally, or about the Phoenix Suns and Mercury organizations,” Sarver said in a statement published on the team’s website. “While I can’t begin to know how to respond to some of the vague suggestions made by mostly anonymous voices, I can certainly tell you that some of the claims I find completely repugnant to my nature and to the character of the Suns/Mercury workplace, and I can tell you they never, ever happened.”
“First and foremost, I reject any insinuation of personal or organizational racism or gender discrimination. I despise language that disrespects any individuals, regardless of race, gender, preference, or choice,” Sarver’s statement continued. “Such language has no place in business or at home in what I consider Suns and Mercury families. I am proud of our record of diversity and inclusion on both teams — whether on the court or in the front office.”
Green Responds to Sarver’s Alleged Comments About Him
GettyCameron Johnson, of the Phoenix Suns, drives the ball past Draymond Green, of the Golden State Warriors, during an NBA game at Phoenix Suns Arena on January 28, 2021, in Phoenix, Arizona.
Draymond Green took to Twitter on Thursday and responded to Sarver’s alleged comments from five years ago.
Always outspoken and never shy, Green did not directly reference Sarver or Holmes’ story on ESPN in his tweets. His responses were short and succinct, indicating disappointment and disbelief.
But I was fined?? Lol smh
“But was I fined??” Green tweeted Thursday morning “Lol smh.”
The Warriors’ decorated forward added another comment to his Twitter account a short time later.
Sometimes you have to see deeper than the surface. Always layers…
“Sometimes you have to see deeper than the surface,” Green wrote. “Always layers…”
Green’s comments may well prove predictive, as the NBA announced Thursday it will launch an investigation into the Phoenix Suns organization based on the accusations set forth in the ESPN report — meaning there are certainly more layers to this story yet to be revealed.