Getty Kevin Durant #35 of the Phoenix Suns speaks with the media following the NBA game against the Golden State Warriors.
Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant clarified he meant no “ill will” when he made his “need help” comment towards his former Golden State Warriors teammate Draymond Green.
“I’m glad he’s back. I’m glad he can move past that. Draymond is an incredible teammate,” Durant said via NBA.com after the Suns lost to the LA Clippers on January 8. “He got his times where he loses his temper but everybody has those times. I’m sure they’re all happy to have him back.”
“I know some people look at me as this malicious snake, passive-aggressive. I know how people feel about me sometimes. When I say (expletive) I don’t mean no harm about nobody. I don’t mean to disrespect him or his family if he felt that way. I’m just glad he’s back on the court.”
After Green struck Suns center, Jusuf Nurkic, in the face, Durant echoed his current teammate’s sentiment for Green to get “professional” help.
“Yeah, that was insane to see,” Durant said about Green after he struck Jusuf Nurkić in the face on December 12 against the Phoenix Suns. “Glad Nurk is all right. Never seen that before on the basketball court in an NBA game.
“I hope Draymond gets the help that he needs. There’s been incident after incident. I know Draymond, and … he hasn’t been that way when I was around him and coming into the league. So, hopefully, he gets the help he needs, and gets back on the court and puts all this stuff behind him.”
Green underwent counseling during his suspension and will continue to do it for the rest of the season.
Draymond Green Initially ‘Pissed’ at Kevin Durant
Green was initially pissed upon hearing Durant’s comments. But during his suspension, he had an introspection.
“So then I went back to Kevin Durant’s statement and he said ‘he was not like that.’ So as I sat with myself, I said, ‘I think it’s time the world gets to know me. Who I am,’” Green said on his podcast “The Draymond Green Show.” “And if I can look at Kevin’s statement the right way with the right mindset through the right lens, he’s acknowledging essentially what I want the world to know about me.
“Then he spoke about help. And I’m like, ‘How is he going to say I need help?’ And when I went back through it with another lens I was like, ‘Maybe you shouldn’t hear help so negatively.’ Maybe you’re listening to the word ‘help’ with the same mindset that the word help meant when you were 15 years old. So maybe you shouldn’t hear that so negatively and maybe he’s not saying it as negatively as you’re taking it. And even if he was, I made a decision at that moment that I wasn’t going to take it that way.
“And it was a very proud moment for me. Because I said you’re ready for growth. That’s a step in the right direction.”
No Plan to Trade Draymond Green, Klay Thompson
The Warriors are upbeat despite Sunday’s loss to the Toronto Raptors with Green’s impending return. They continue to indicate they want to ride it out with their aging trio of stars of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Green according to NBA Insider Marc Stein.
“It must be reiterated, for starters, that the Warriors do not exactly appear to be one trade away from contention based on current form. There likewise continues to be zero indication that they would even explore trading franchise legends Klay Thompson or Draymond Green,” Stein wrote in his January 8 Substack newsletter.
Thompson’s inconsistent performances and Green’s volatile behavior are threatening to waste one of Curry’s remaining championship windows. Despite signs that their dynasty is ending, the Warriors refuse to waive the white flag.