Monday marked the true start to the 2024-25 NBA season, as the majority of players around the league took part in NBA Media Day. And already, Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green has found his way into headlines after a rather contentious moment with Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Green fielded a rather interesting question from Ostler, claiming that “people”, including his fans and “maybe his teammates” were worried about Green.
Ostler didn’t initially explain why in his eyes these “people” were worried about Green. So naturally, Green was quite confused by the statement, which resulted in a rather uncomfortable back-and-forth between Green and Ostler.
“Why are they worried about me? I am a successful black man in America doing incredibly well,” said Green. “What’s to worry about me?”
“They worry about you,” Ostler adamantly further implied.
“There are way more people in this world to worry about than me,” Green added. “That’s for sure.”
“But we’re here now,” replied Ostler.
“We’re all here. I don’t think you should worry about me,” added Green. “I’m doing pretty well. If you would have told me when I was 13 years old in Saginaw, Michigan without a pot to piss in that you would be sitting here and somebody would say that they are worried about you… I probably would have told them they were out of their mind. I’d be sitting here and they would be worried about me.”
A reporter told Draymond Green that some people [fans and maybe teammates] worry about him, here was some of the back and forth between them both.
Draymond: “Why they worried about me? I’m a successful black man in America doing incredibly well. What’s to worry about?”… pic.twitter.com/5vzm0iRWfn
— KNBR (@KNBR) September 30, 2024
Ostler then finally shared why he believes “people” are worried about Green, questioning his availability as a member of the Warriors.
“They are worried for themselves too,” said Ostler. “Because they know that the team needs you and they don’t know if you are going to be here.”
“I’m here,” said Green. “I’ve been here for 13 years now. Been here pretty much every night for 13 years.”
The remainder of the conversation between Ostler and Green is hard to make out, as Ostler seemingly stepped away from the microphone.
But it seemed like Ostler took exception to Green’s past suspensions that have resulted in significant time away, which Ostler was illuding to throughout.
Green ended the conversation by taking exception to the way that Ostler was trying to “spin” Green’s impact on the Warriors over the years.
“The guideline of getting suspended is something that’s in place because it’s a possibility. I don’t get the question. I think my mindset has helped us do some great things. That’s pretty cool. 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.”
Green does raise a very good point. While the four-time NBA champion does at times toe the line of taking things too far on the court, his impact on the Warriors organization, and the NBA as a whole, is undeniable.
His on-court controversy also really hasn’t impacted him off the court either. If anything, it has actually benefitted him, as he notably hosts his own podcast and was featured as an analyst on Inside the NBA numerous times this past postseason.
It’s perhaps not all that shocking to see Ostler raising these questions to Green to start the season, as he has been quite critical of Green and his suspensions in the past.
Regardless, Green very clearly feels like things are going just fine for him heading into the 2024-25 NBA season.