Draymond Green is at the center of the NBA Finals again – but not for his play on the court … again.
Following an abysmal Game 3 where the Golden State Warriors forward fouled out with just two points, four rebounds and three assists in 35 minutes and his team lost 116-110 to down 2-1 to the Boston Celtics, Green responded to a question concerning his weekly podcast, “The Draymond Green Show.”
Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer asked Green if he thought what he said on his podcast before Game 3 affected the way the Celtics played against the Warriors, particularly with his breakdown of how to defend Derrick White, Marcus Smart and Al Horford.
Green, who appeared a little perturbed by the question, asserted that his comments on the podcast weren’t any different from what he would say at the podium after a game and likely wouldn’t have affected the Celtics’ Game 3 strategy. He did, however, appreciate Fischer’s organic promotion of his podcast.
“Oh that’s just contested shots. If that’s X’s and O’s then… you’re reaching for something,” Green said Wednesday night when asked about his podcast. “It’s all good though. Keep going. Reaching heavy. When you find that they are taking X’s and O’s away from your podcast. The only thing you said was White, Smart and Horford, hmm. You went for it. Respect. Appreciate the podcast promo you gave me. ‘The Draymond Green Show,’ the next time just mention it that way.”
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was also asked after the game if he thought Green’s podcast revealed anything the Celtics could use in Game 3. Kerr didn’t know what Green said, but added he didn’t think Green’s podcast was a distraction.
“I don’t listen to the podcast so I don’t know what he’s said on there. It doesn’t bother me,” Kerr said after the game. “It’s 2022. It’s a different world. Players are part of the media now. It is what it is.”
Naturally, Green had a more candid reaction to Game 3, his play and questions about his postgame activities on his actual podcast. He said his podcast “ain’t going nowhere” and he’ll film it no matter what happens in the game.
Green’s show launched as a weekly podcast in November 2021 for The Volume, a network founded by Colin Cowherd and iHeartMedia earlier that year. While episodes were originally scheduled to be released weekly during the season, Green has posted episodes the day after Warriors’ games throughout the 2022 postseason – including the NBA Finals.
Reactions to Green’s podcast
A few former NBA players and media personalities weren’t too keen on Green taking time to podcast following a Finals game. Namely, Isiah Thomas and Kendrick Perkins both thought Green’s poor performance was a direct result of his attention to his off-court endeavors.
Former NFL defensive end Chris Long, who has a podcast of his own, did tweet in support of Green podcasting after games. Long tweeted that postgame activities vary from player to player and are rarely distractions. He even pointed out that Michael Jordan golfed with Danny Ainge before Game 2 of the 1986 Eastern Conference first-round matchup between Jordan’s Chicago Bulls and Ainge’s Celtics.
“If you think @Money23Green 30 minute postgame podcast affects his play, then we should definitely let players skip media availability bc that’s more distracting and time consuming,” Long tweeted. “The criticisms are goofy.”
More Game 3 controversy
Green’s podcast wasn’t the only problematic issue for him in Game 3. He also endured a bevy boos – including some explicit ones – from Celtics fans during his pregame introduction and throughout the game.
While Green said he didn’t really react to the crowd because “they did what I expected,” Green’s wife, Kerr and teammate Klay Thompson came to the forward’s defense.
Thompson and Kerr sarcastically called Celtics fans “classy” while Green’s wife, Hazel Renee, called them “disgusting.”
