Wizards have a new rivalry with the Warriors thanks to Draymond Green
By Cem Yolbulan
The infamous incident of Draymond Green punching his then-teammate Jordan Poole is not going away. Green’s punch came during the Golden State Warriors training camp and has affected the team’s chemistry and performance all year long. Even with Poole being a member of the Washington Wizards now, Green is adding more fuel to the fire, drawing the ire of Poole and the Wizards fans.
Draymond Green was a guest on Patrick Beverley’s podcast where he said the following about the incident:
"“I don’t just hit people. Dialogue, of course, happens over time and you usually ain’t just triggered by something like that fast, you know, to that degree… You know, we know stuff that you don’t say amongst men, you know what I’m saying?”"
This is a bizarre re-instigation of the conflict between two players. After the punch last season, Green apologized, Poole accepted the apology and the two maintained a professional relationship. Now, Green coming out defending his actions and questioning Poole’s character seems like an unnecessary provocation.
If Green wants to paint himself as a non-violent person, he has to come out and say what Poole actually said to him to warrant a violent reaction. Otherwise, this comes off as a petty statement.
Poole and his family obviously didn’t hold back. Poole suggested Green “find himself a new hobby” on an Instagram post, while his father and Green had a spicy and explicit back-and-forth on Twitter.
Despite being much younger than Draymond Green, Poole has been more mature about this whole situation, avoiding throwing his former teammate under the bus on every occasion. Green needs to move on as well.
But if he doesn’t, the games between the Washington Wizards and the Golden State Warriors will be must-watch events for the foreseeable future. Let’s hope the national tv broadcasters take advantage of this new-found rivalry between the two teams.
