The tension between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole remains prevalent, but the veteran forward shared a parting message to his former teammate after Poole was traded to the Washington Wizards last month.
"I wish him well," Green told fellow NBA player and host Patrick Beverley on the latest episode of "The Pat Bev Podcast." I was showing him the ropes in this league, so I wish him well. I think he’s got a bright future. Super talented. Super skilled. Going to a situation where he’s got an opportunity to even grow at a pace that’s not next to three guys who are going to be in the Hall of Fame, three guys who’s accomplished what not many has accomplished in the NBA.
"He’ll have an opportunity to even grow not at that pace, yet having that experience. I think that’s a tool in itself, so I don’t have no hard feelings toward anything. I wish him well on his journey."
In a blockbuster move that stunned the basketball universe, Golden State traded Poole, which it selected No. 28 overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, to Washington in exchange for veteran point guard Chris Paul.
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Just a few months ago, Green was very adamant and honest about his role in the Warriors' collapsed 2022-23 season, assuring he would focus on rebuilding his relationship with Poole before the start of the 2023-24 season. He admitted that punching the young guard during a preseason practice ultimately factored into the failed season.
While the four-time champion acknowledged that it would be on him to salvage the relationship, Green's tone and response to the incident after Poole was traded did a full 180 in the recent podcast.
"I don’t just hit people," Green told Beverly. "Dialogue — of course — happens over time. You usually ain’t just triggered by something, that fast to that degree. This is a team. Ain’t nobody on my team triggering me in an instant. Dialogue of course happens over time…
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"We know stuff that you don’t say amongst men. We know things that you have to stand on. As I’ve admitted before, I was wrong in the way that I handled it — for the situation and where we were. But, I’m a man at the end of the day and I stand on things. And there are certain things you have to stand on."
Before the altercation last fall, Green and Poole appeared to have a close bond and even had their lockers next to each other in the Warriors' locker room. An old clip from 2019 recently recirculated on social media showing Green unveiling and encouraging Poole's trash talk as a rookie.
But things went from sweet to sour quickly, and nine months after the punch, Poole's dad even got involved, sharing his piece of mind publicly for the first time on Twitter.
Green exchanged some words back.
It's clear that the aftermath of the altercation is far from over, but as both sides try to move on in their new endeavors, Green wishes Poole well in his fresh start.
