Draymond Green is a soundbite machine.
Over the past couple of weeks he’s made major headlines with his appearances on NBA player podcasts with Paul George and Patrick Beverley. A couple of weeks ago, Green admitted that he doesn’t “know” Jonathan Kuminga despite their two full seasons of being teammates together.
On Thursday’s edition of 95.7 The Game’s “Steiny & Guru”, longtime Warriors reporter Monte Poole said that Draymond’s lack of a relationship with Kuminga is troublesome.
“It’s a problem and it can only be fixed by Draymond, who has to commit himself to doing that,” Poole told Matt Steinmetz and Daryle ‘The Guru’ Johnson. “Honestly, at this point, we’re not sure that he’s ready to do that. They’ve signed him to a new contract, which implies that they believe he can and will. But I think there are a lot of people over there thinking, ‘Let’s wait and see how this plays out. Around the league, there are a lot more people saying, ‘I don’t know.’ We’re gonna find out.”
For reference, here’s what Green told George about trying to mentor the 20-year-old Kuminga.
“I start thinking about what it means to know someone,” Green said. “I don’t know him. Yet I’m trying to lead him. That’s something that (Michigan State) coach (Tom) Izzo taught me as a freshman: ‘Draymond, how can you lead someone if you don’t know them and don’t spend any time with them?’”
Kuminga doesn’t have the reputation of being a trash-talker like Poole – but he appears to be the heir apparent for Green once his career is over. Will Draymond be willing to groom the man who could succeed him? Beyond that – will Green continue to sow division amongst the locker room?
Monte Poole thinks the Warriors haven’t fully recovered from the ramifications of Draymond’s punch of Jordan Poole last October.
“I think it’s fair to say that,” Monte Poole said. “There’s still some work to be done. There really is. We know how Steph (Curry) is a very loyal guy, he’s loyal to Draymond, to Klay, loyal to the team, the franchise, all of that. But what Draymond is doing is kinda putting (Curry) in an awkward situation. Draymond is his guy, but Draymond makes it hard at times for guys to stay with him. It’s gonna be important. … It doesn’t help that (former general manager) Bob Myers is out of the picture.”
The Warriors reshaped their roster this past year, trading away 22-year-old James Wiseman, 24-year-old Jordan Poole, along with 2022 draft picks Patrick Baldwin Jr. and Ryan Rollins. Meanwhile, they have brought on 38-year-old Chris Paul and signed veterans like Cory Joseph, 31, and Dario Saric, 29.
Draymond has said he’s looking forward to playing with more “adults” this season, but has been the originator of controversy this summer with his recent comments on Jordan Poole, alluding that his constant trash talk led Green to punch him during a preseason practice last year.
Monte Poole thinks that the Warriors front office can’t be happy with Green’s recent comments, especially on Jordan Poole, as they’ve put The Punch back into the media cycle.
“I would say it’s an annoyance,” Monte Poole said. “Something they don’t need. They’re trying to move past this whole situation that obviously nobody wanted.”
