Draymond Green on adding KD: 'I'd sacrifice everything for championships'
LAS VEGAS – The credit for which moment, which words, which person helped push Kevin Durant to the Golden State Warriors has been passed around better than the ball movement for one of the team’s precision-orchestrated offensive possessions.
Durant acknowledged at his introductory news conference that the chemistry between Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala was so genuine when the Warriors met him at that mansion in the Hamptons that it seemed like the quartet was holding hands. Iguodala used the meeting to explain how Durant would have the time of his life with the Warriors, harking back to the bond formed on Team USA in 2010. Curry sent that text message afterward to let Durant know that he didn’t care about getting the glory or the shine. Jerry West called in a day later to discuss the sting of his postseason failings and how Durant would fit in Golden State. Steve Nash even hopped in to provide another nudge.
So, Green immediately curled up his lips to grin on Monday when it was suggested that he might’ve been the most persuasive factor in Durant’s decision: “I think everybody played their part. No man is bigger than the other. Everybody played their part,” Green said after Team USA held its first practice at Mendenhall Center on the campus of UNLV. “We’re happy to have him.”
So much went into the Warriors executing the most seismic free-agent coup since LeBron James switched teams twice that what’s often overlooked is that none of it would’ve occurred if Durant hadn’t been open to leaving Oklahoma City. While shooting down speculation about the role former teammate Russell Westbrook played in his exit, Durant said, “I just made a decision based on where I wanted to go. Simple as that. We can think about all the reasoning and the factors, but the fact is it’s that simple. This is where I want to play basketball.”
Green certainly helped plant the seeds for Durant’s departure by letting him know throughout a historic 73-win regular season and the postseason that the services of a former MVP and four-time scoring champion were needed in Oakland. The concerns Green shared – that Curry was carrying too heavy a load – played out during an NBA Finals collapse against Cleveland that created a more acceptable opening for Durant to enter. But Green wanted to make it clear after his first practice with his new teammates that his role in Durant’s recruitment is somewhat overblown.
“Me and KD are friends,” Green told The Vertical. “People making it seem like I texted him every day like, ‘Yo, we want you to come to the Warriors!’ I text him, he texts me, like, ‘What’s up? How you doing?’
“A lot of times, people forget we’re human. We go through a lot of the same stuff when it comes to dealing with everything, so sometimes, it’s just good to hear from a brother who is going through some stuff, like, ‘How are you doing with this? How are you dealing with that?’ It’s refreshing. So I think, more than anything … people are like, ‘He’s calling KD during the season, they’re recruiting him.’ For what? No need to do that. We’re friends! I never thought it was a problem being someone’s friend. But that’s what people are making it out to be. At this point, it don’t even matter anymore … obviously.”
How the Warriors beat out four other teams to win the Durant sweepstakes remains “shocking” to Green, who didn’t really give his team a chance even as Durant revealed himself to be receptive to the pitch. “You don’t get a top-three player in the world – some would say best player in the world, it’s all someone’s opinion – you don’t get that every day. That’s just not normal,” Green said. “I’m not going to act like this is something that happens every day. This is one of the biggest moves in NBA history. Like, I hope everybody else was shocked, if I am.”
Green probably stands to lose the most from Durant’s arrival. The Warriors sent three players to the All-Star Game last season, a difficult accomplishment in the overly stacked Western Conference, and the chances that the team will have four All-Stars next season would require another legendary campaign, or Green could be taking a vacation instead of participating in the festivities next February.
“Long as you win, everything else takes care of itself,” Green told The Vertical. “I’d sacrifice everything for championships. When you win, you don’t really sacrifice anything because everybody gets love when you win. That’s kind of my thing. If you’re a winner, you can’t really be denied too much of anything. I don’t mind sacrificing anything for championships, and that’s what we set out to do, win championships.”
The U.S. Olympic team will provide an initial training ground for playing on a star-studded team, with All-Stars and All-NBA players at almost every turn. Durant and Thompson have already won gold medals and benefited from the Team USA experience. Green, a first-timer on this international stage, already likes what he’s heard from coach Mike Krzyzewski about how to handle such an environment.
“The one thing I really enjoy, the one thing Coach K has told us, how everybody says, ‘Check your ego at the door.’ He said, ‘I don’t want anyone to check their ego at the door. I want everybody’s ego in here. And we use those egos to make one.’ I think that’s something that – after we go get this gold – that we all can take back [to our teams].”
Durant has taken his share of criticism for leaving the Thunder for a team one year removed from a championship. Commissioner Adam Silver even suggested that the move was bad for the league. But the Warriors have yet to receive the same level of vitriol as the Miami Heat because of the different circumstances surrounding Durant’s move – primarily the salary-cap boon that allowed a superstar to join an already established power. But Green believes Golden State is prepared to be perceived as the villain with Durant on board, having experienced some backlash for their success last season.
“I think a lot of people were against us,” Green said. “It’s a lot of haters. A lot of hate. But if they ain’t hating, you’re doing something wrong. So we’re doing something right. Whether they hate us or love us, we still need to go out and win games.”
As he began loading up his Team USA backpack to prepare to catch the bus back to the hotel, Green looked over at Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving, who captured the one thing Golden State was unable to claim last season, and asked, “How’s your ring?” Irving looked back, confused, and couldn’t offer a response because his ring won’t arrive for another few months.
But the Warriors did get the ultimate consolation prize after failing to close out the NBA Finals. “It definitely helps out, for sure,” Green said of getting Durant to commit to the Warriors. “I think it took a lot of guts for him to make that decision. I think we can do some special things.”
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