"That's a strong group, tight-knit group"- Kevin Durant confident Draymond Green's punch won't derail the Warriors' season
Brooklyn Nets superstar forward Kevin Durant is no stranger to Golden State Warriors All-Star forward Draymond Green’s sometimes irrational behavior. Durant and Green played a total of 180 games together over three seasons with the Warriors between 2016 and 2019.
They won two titles together in 2017 and 2018. However, the two didn’t always see eye to eye. They were even involved in a verbal altercation during the 2018-2019 season.
In a recent interview with ESPN’s Nick Friedell, Kevin Durant was asked to compare his incident to the recent Green-Jordan Poole altercation. He said:
"That's not the same situation. Somebody got punched in the face. ... It's no comparison to that. I had never seen nothing like that before.”
TMZ obtained the video of the altercation between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole at practice
tmz.com/videos/2022-10… https://t.co/k02BGsBo8G
Durant also said what happened between him and Green is a common occurrence in the NBA:
“But what me and Draymond did a few years back, that s--- happens all the time."
Tensions ran high between KD and Draymond after going into OT with the Clippers. https://t.co/J1EX86uNSz
Kevin Durant and Draymond Green’s altercation led to Green being suspended for one game. Durant and Green were able to move past the incident. However, Durant still left the Warriors the following offseason to join the Brooklyn Nets.
Durant also spoke about what the path could look like for the Warriors moving forward from their recent altercation:
"It seems cool, everybody's back to normal. Draymond is playing next game, Jordan was playing last game. So, I guess it's back to normal.
"I know that group. That's a strong group, tight-knit group. And I just hate to see that be seen in the public, what's going on in practices and stuff. But hopefully, they get that figured out and we can move forward."
Warriors coach Steve Kerr announced that Draymond Green will return for Friday’s preseason game against the Denver Nuggets. The Golden State Warriors will kick off their regular season on Oct. 18 at home against the LA Lakers.
Kyrie Irving on Draymond Green-Jordan Poole altercation.
Kevin Durant's teammate, All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, also spoke to ESPN about the Draymond Green-Jordan Poole altercation. Irving, however, talked about how he was used to seeing incidents like this:
"I'm used to it. I'm used to everything in basketball. ... I'm used to everything in sports.
“I've seen it with my dad as a kid. I've seen it in NBA locker rooms. Men, when it comes to this game, are very passionate, especially in our league. And when emotions rise like that, anything can happen.”
Finally, Irving added that he hoped both players would get what they need:
“I pray that Draymond gets what he needs, and JP comes back and stays focused and doesn't allow anything to distract him."
For Nick Friedell's full report on the whole situation, click here.