There’s plenty of buzz surrounding the Golden State Warriors‘ impending playoff matchup with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. Amid all of the chatter, there was a new report surrounding James, Draymond Green, and Warriors head coach Steve Kerr.
According to Andscape’s Marc J. Spears, Green asked Kerr permission to fly to Los Angeles to see the King break Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record back in February.
Green told Spears that Kerr denied the his request, telling him that it would’ve been a bad look amongst his teammates.
“Yeah, I was definitely going,” Green told Spears. “It was a TNT game. I was doing the broadcast and Steve said, ‘I don’t think that’ll be great for our team. While we’re flying out on the road, you’re flying to LA, guys see that, guys see you on the TV calling the game. This is a big game for us against Portland.’ I said, ‘All right, respect. No problem. I’ll be there with my team.'”
The 33-year-old continued, saying that he and the Warriors were able to get the win in Portland, but he was a bit disappointed not to be there for the big moment.
“I flew to Portland, we got to get a win and we’re here. So, it definitely was something that I wanted to be present for. It was just such a big moment in life and friendship. But there will be other big moments and we’ll create great memories.”
Draymond Green Previews LeBron James Matchup in Lakers-Warriors
Though Green and James are good friends, there surely won’t be any love lost on the court this series.
Golden State’s former Defensive Player of the Year, shared his thought’s on LeBron’s Lakers, after eliminating the Sacramento Kings on Sunday.
“Totally different team than they’ve been the last couple of years,” Green said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “Ever since they made those trades at the deadline they’ve been an incredible team…LeBron is playing more off the ball than he ever has in his career, which I applaud. It’s hard for a guy like that to make that transition and he’s seamlessly done it, and it’s helped their team. Not that LeBron holding the ball is a problem, but it’s just allowed other guys to do more. So, they’re playing with confidence… It’ll be a tough series, but that’s what you expect as you move forward in the playoffs.”
Draymond Green Encourages Media to Appreciate Warriors, LeBron James
Green was later asked about how both James and the Warriors are able to consistently compete at a high level. He responded first by explaining how much hinges on each party’s will to win, the later sent strong message to anyone looking to “turn the page” on the Dubs, or on the King.
“Stop trying to turn the page on us so fast. Stop trying to turn the page on Bron so fast. We get so caught up in what’s the next thing that we don’t appreciate the current. Then you get to the next thing and looking back like ‘Man I wish we still had that, I wish we could still see this.’ So for me and our guys, we’re going to appreciate this every step of the way.”
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Warriors’ Steve Kerr Shot Down Draymond Green’s LeBron James Request: Report