Draymond Green fires shots at ex-teammate Jordan Poole’s Wizards: “You know they are going to finish at 14”
There's no love lost between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole, despite the two former teammates no longer playing for the same team. Following their infamous altercation at practice on Oct. 5, 2022, and the team being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, the Golden State Warriors shipped Poole to the Washington Wizards as part of a multi-team trade for Chris Paul.
Since then, both teams have struggled. The Warriors missed the playoffs last season, and the Wizards finished the year with one of the worst records in the NBA. This offseason, however, Washington made some big moves in an attempt to bolster their roster, acquiring Malcolm Brogdon and Jonas Valančiūnas while drafting French star Alex Sarr with the second pick of the draft.
While this has fueled optimism about the franchise's future heading into next season, Draymond Green isn't impressed. During Wednesday's episode of The "Draymond Green Show," the former Defensive Player of the Year shared his 2024-25 prediction for the Washington Wizards:
"I intentionally skipped over Washington, by the way. Just so you know. We don't need to discuss. It's always interesting starting the season and seeing the bum teams at number one and number two in the conference. And you know, they gonna finish at 14."
How the infamous Draymond Green-Jordan Poole altercation impacted the Warriors
Heading into training camp for the 2022-23 season, Jordan Poole, Draymond Green, and the rest of the Golden State Warriors were eager to defend their NBA championship following a dominant season capped off by a six-game series win over the Boston Celtics. However, their championship hopes were quickly derailed by an infamous altercation between Green and Poole.
At the time, Poole was eligible for a big contract, which sparked a heated back-and-forth between him and Green during practice. Poole called the former DPOY an "expensive backpack," a comment that didn't sit well with Green. This led to verbal sparring, pushing and eventually, Green taking a swing at Poole.
Although Poole wasn't hurt and completed his workout before leaving practice, as first reported by The Athletic, the altercation had lasting effects on the team. Speaking to ESPN, Coach Steve Kerr explained that the altercation created a lack of trust within the team:
"There's no hiding from it -- the incident with Draymond and Jordan at the beginning of the year played a role in that. It's hard for that not to impact a team. ... We have to get back to what has made us really successful, which is a really trusting environment and a group that relies on one another and makes each other better."
Although there were questions about whether the team would part ways with Green after their playoff exit, the Warriors traded Poole to keep their big three together. Heading into the upcoming season, the team wound up losing one-third of their big three anyway, with Klay Thompson joining the Dallas Mavericks.