It’s rare for a player-coach tandem in the NBA to stay together for more than a couple years, but Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has been at the helm since 2014, and Draymond Green has been with him the entire way.
They’ve gotten on each other’s nerves before, and cameras caught them going at it on Monday night, December 22 during Golden State’s 120-97 win over the Orlando Magic.
“We had it out a little bit,” Kerr, 60, told the media after the game. “He made his decision to go back to the locker room to cool off. That’s all I’m going to say about it. Everything is private.”
Kerr and Green, 35, were seen arguing in the huddle during a third-quarter timeout with the Warriors down by five. Warriors guard Moses Moody and assistant coach Jerry Stackhouse appeared to be trying to calm Green down before the Michigan State alum stormed off into the locker room. He returned to the bench in the fourth quarter but did not check back into the game.
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“Tempers spilled over, and I thought it was best that I get out of there,” Green said. “I don’t think it was a situation where it was going to get better. It was best to remove myself.”
Neither player nor coach elaborated on the nature of the argument, but Kerr said he was not going to put his veteran back into the game when he returned from the locker room.
“No,” Kerr said. “He wasn’t going back in. No. He left. He went back to the locker room. We moved forward, and the guys played great.”
Warriors star Stephen Curry was also asked about the disagreement, but he downplayed the incident.
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“The questions are a little bit more negative than they should be,” Curry, 37, said. “I get why you’re asking them, but downstairs right now, the DJ has a good playlist going, the guys are getting their work in and we’re having a good time because we’re winning.”
Green’s outburst came one game after he was ejected against the Phoenix Suns for shoving a Phoenix player, then having a heated argument with an official. He played only eight minutes in that game and 18 minutes against the Magic before walking off the court.
“We need Draymond,” Kerr said. “He’s a champion. We’ve been together for a long time. It’s unfortunate what happened, but it happened.”
As for Green, he said he thought he played well and noted that the anger he showed was not related to his performance.
“I’m not frustrated at all,” Green said. “I had one turnover today. I had the ball the whole time I was in the game. I know how to fix problems when they’re a problem. I had one turnover in my minutes. I essentially ran our offense.”
“We’ve been at this now for a long time,” he added. “Sometimes you’re with people for a long time and there’s a level of comfort and s*** happens. We move forward.”
Given Green’s knack for speaking his mind, it’s hard not to take him at his word. The four-time NBA champion is one month removed from confronting a fan in the stands over what he deemed an offensive chant directed his way. In early November, he made headlines for declaring on his podcast that Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is “a bum” and Dallas would never win a Super Bowl with him as the leader.
