The Golden State Warriors entered the season as the reigning NBA champions, but they were never at their best in 2022-23.
It all started with that altercation between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole, with the former punching the latter and earning a suspension right before the start of the campaign.
And now that the season is over, Green told Stephen A. Smith that he believes that altercation snowballed into their subpar season, as it kept him from speaking out and trying to establish the team’s culture throughout the campaign.
Draymond speaks on how his altercation with Jordan Poole affected Warriors’ season.@Money23Green | @stephenasmith pic.twitter.com/ZSSE3yhyE2
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 17, 2023
Green admits that his reputation took a bit of a dive, so he didn’t want to be as loud and outspoken as he usually was.
The team struggled to develop winning habits throughout the season, and Green believes it was too late to correct them when he finally started feeling like himself again.
Notably, that also set a precedent in his relationship with Poole, who recently claimed that they just share a court together; they’re not friends.
Poole dismissed him and Stephen Curry on the sidelines in the playoffs, and it’s evident that he’s not looking forward to hearing from his team’s veterans — or even his coach — right now.
Winning teams develop winning habits, and it’s hard to shake things off when you don’t have a vocal veteran leader keeping the band together.
Props to Green for acknowledging his mistake and taking some of the blame for his team’s shortcomings, and it’ll now be up to him to make things right, assuming he wants to stay.
NEXT:
Steve Kerr Makes His Thoughts Clear About Importance Of Draymond Green
