Draymond Green once punched Jordan Poole during a practice. Now Poole has said he would consider returning to the Golden State Warriors, and Green says he would have no problem with it. “I have no issue with that at all,” Green said, per Joseph Dycus of the Mercury News.
Poole Opens the Door to a Golden State Warriors Return
Poole has been away from the Warriors for three-plus seasons. After Monday’s 138-87 win over his New Orleans Pelicans, he spoke about his love for the Bay Area. He said he would consider returning “home” to the team that drafted him in 2019.
Poole is in the final season of a four-year, $128 million rookie scale extension he signed in the 2022 offseason. He never played a game for the Warriors on that deal. He was traded to the Washington Wizards the summer the extension kicked in.
“Yes … It just feels like home, you know? … This is my last year on the deal. I’m a free agent at the end of the season. So you never really know what’s going to happen.”
(via @bylucaevans)
What Draymond Green Said After the Win
Green was asked about Poole’s comments in the locker room. His answer was short and direct.
“I will never stand in the way of this organization thinking they can better themselves,” Green said, per Dycus. “The issue will never be me. Ever.”
Those last two lines took off on social media. Many fans read them as a shot at Poole, as if Green was saying Poole would be the one with the problem.
Green Clears the Air on His Podcast
Green cleared it up on “The Draymond Green Show.” He said he was asked how he felt about Poole’s comments, and he gave an honest answer.
“I don’t have a problem with that at all,” Green recalled. “Number one, I don’t make decisions here. I’m a basketball player. I don’t decide my own future here, let alone someone else’s.”
He then made it personal. “I’m an adult. So if you’re asking me as if that’s going to be a problem for me, that’s no problem for me … I’m not someone who walks around with a grudge.”
“That’s no problem for me…I go back to the moment, received a call from Mike Dunleavy about Chris Paul and I said ‘Listen, me and Chris Paul do not see eye to eye, can’t say I’m very fond of him at all,
A Golden State Warriors Decision, Not a Draymond Issue
Danny Emerman of the San Francisco Standard shared another Green quote from Monday night. Green said he made a mistake in the incident with Poole and has moved on. He said he does not hold grudges.
“But that’s not a Draymond issue,” Green said, per Emerman. “That’s a Golden State Warriors decision.”
The Chris Paul Example
Green pointed to a past situation to show how he has handled this before. Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy once asked him about trading for Chris Paul, then with the Wizards. Green said he and Paul did not see eye to eye.
His answer to Dunleavy was the same one he gave this week. “I wouldn’t stand in the way of what you think this team needs, or what can help make this team better,” Green recalled.
If the Warriors ever wanted Poole back, Green said, it would be a “non-issue” for him.
Warriors’ Draymond Green Makes Feelings Clear on Jordan Poole Return