Well, the league didn’t have to wait for the season to begin to witness a Draymond Green rampage. For those who have missed it, the Golden State Warriors power forward had a heated verbal volley with a reporter on Media Day. Even though the 4x NBA Champ tried to keep it under control, the media blew it out of proportion. In that lineup, Stephen A. Smith has come up with a new Kevin Durant punch and blamed the Phoenix Suns superstar for the mishap.
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Before we go into Smith’s latest rant, let’s go to the bottom of the issue. So, even if Green tried to stay away from controversies, he doesn’t seem to get away with it. When a reporter, highlighting DrayMagic’s suspensions from last season, said “people” are worried about him. Of course, this didn’t sit well with the star. Green tried to shrug it off, disapproving the claim but the reporter went on, resulting in a heated debate.
At the end, Draymond Green, gave up his argument, saying, “It’s all about how you spin it. I love how you are trying to spin it but it ain’t my spin to it player.” On the other end, the media and fans had begun debating about Green’s behavior. Surprisingly, to his defense, Stephen A. Smith stepped into the field with an important argument. The veteran analyst recalled Kevin Durant‘s statement when he said, “gets the help he needs” following Green’s ugly on-court altercation with Jusuf Nurkic. He even claimed that he went “ballistic” with that statement
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In the latest episode of First Take, Smith blamed KD for Green’s disrespect, “You don’t bring that kind of attention to Draymond Green or anybody else or for that matter unless you’re sure about that.” Following that, he turned to the reporter and said, “You can’t turn around and then look at him and say well people are worried about you,” after listing down Green’s service to the franchise.
Stephen A. Smith schooled reporter after the Draymond Green controversy
The veteran analyst completely stood by Draymond Green following the ugly argument. In fact, he even called out the reporter for the “worried” question, saying, “People are worried about you what the hell does that mean what are you trying to imply worried about what because it took on a greater connotation rather than just basketball and that’s what Draymond was saying and I stand totally by him.“
USA Today via Reuters
Jan 24, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) reacts during the first half against the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
At the same time, Smith didn’t let go of the controversy easily. The 56-year-old went on to find a way to ethically approach the question, saying “how you phrase the question matters”. Smith pointed out that the reporter could’ve brought in Green’s two costly suspensions that cost the Warriors a playoff birth, before asking how he had prepared for the upcoming season.
It’s indeed a journalism lesson that Stephen A. Smith handed out to his audience on how not to offend the players while asking a question. In the meantime, it’s important to understand whether Draymond Green has got his anger under control, from a Dubs fans’ perspective. What do you make of the argument? Let us know in the comments.
Before leaving, do watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where Bulldogs’ Asia Avinger details her experience with Kobe Bryant, her WNBA ROTY picks, and more in the video below.
