Draymond Green: Loyal and not backing down!
Draymond Green: Loyal and not backing down!
Rich Paul may have just won over some hearts in Dub Nation with his work in helping Green to return to the Golden Empire.
Whoa whoa whoa, Draymond Green is in the news? But it’s July!
Let me see if I can track down this timeline of social media chatter from the Golden State Warriors’ enforcer and team captain.
AMONGST MEN!
But underneath all that came out this pretty cool quote from the Patrick Beverly podcast that I spotted on NBC Sports. I’m sharing it here for your reading pleasure, and it touches on Green’s loyalty to the Warriors. Also he gives some insight into the mind of Rich Paul, Green’s agent.
"Most agents, I think they chase the buck, they chase the most money that they can get," Green told Philadelphia 76ers guard Patrick Beverley on the latest episode of "The Pat Bev Podcast." "And what I can appreciate about Rich was that even as this negotiation came down to it, his number one priority was keeping me there. And he made it very clear to me that that was his number one priority.
He had a certain dollar amount that he wanted to get to, that we wanted to get to, that we had spoken about before it all even began. And I had other opportunities that would have paid me more money. And even when I would talk to him about what the benefit could be in those opportunities, he would go silent. And it was more money! Like substantially more money, I'm talking about [$10 million more] a year more money.
"And he would just go radio silent. And I would almost like talk myself into believing it and he would just kind of go silent and let me talk. And then the conversation would kind of just end. ... He made it very clear to me and evident just how important loyalty is, how important the situation that you're in is, and for me, I've been there my entire career.
Not to just walk away from that because that dollar amount looks better. That shiny object over there ain't always what it seems like. The way Rich stayed in the pocket and just, the only thing to him, was my legacy, like yeah we're going to get you paid, but your legacy is more important than anything. And that helped me keep focus on not drift too far."
LEGACY! Will the Warriors actually pull off retaining their Core 3 for their entire careers? And heck, should we add Kevon Looney to that core Warrior for life soon?
From Vecenie at the Athletic:
Brandin Podziemski really struggled to score in Las Vegas, and that should be a bit of a concern, as he struggled to separate from his man in any discernible way. But I also want to give him real credit: I’m not sure I saw a smarter, more translatable passer during my time in Las Vegas. He made quick decisions with high-level vision, understanding how to read the second and third levels of the defense. He’s good at playing off two feet and on-balance, allowing him to maintain a live dribble and throw crisp passes within the flow of the offense. Podziemski will struggle to stick if he can’t separate and doesn’t hit 40 percent of his 3s. But his passing and ability to move the ball will fit perfectly within Golden State’s offense.
https://theathletic.com/4695223/2023/07/21/nba-summer-league-takeaways-vecenie?source=user-shared-article
[Rubin] Kerr likened the additions of Saric and Joseph to Otto Porter Jr. and Nemanja Bjelica. “We needed guys like Saric and Cory Joseph who have been through the NBA rigors and understand what it means to be a leader from the middle of the roster and how important that is.”
https://i.redd.it/82gewpgsvcdb1.jpg
[Rubin] Kerr played it close to the vest when asked if CP3 will come off the bench: “All of that will happen in training camp. Until we get everyone on the floor, we won’t be able to assess whats best for our team & how everything is going to look. But Im very confident that it’s going to work out.”
https://i.redd.it/tqpu4ixqvcdb1.jpg
[Rubin] Kerr: “I feel like I failed last year in connecting the group. I have taken a lot of time this summer to think about last year, things I could have & should have done differently. I really believe that sometimes losing sort of forces you to reassess & Im excited about coming back next year.”
https://i.redd.it/ia1t62itvcdb1.jpg
https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/07/20/steve-kerr-shares-thoughts-on-mike-dunleavy-jr-s-offseason-chris-paul-and-personal-goals/