How Draymond Reacted to Kerr’s Rant in Steph vs. Celtics originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Many Warriors fans may not have noticed this during Golden State’s victory over Boston last week, but coach Steve Kerr did something you don’t see very often.
He turned angrily on guard Steph Curry after a bad turnover, something many NBA coaches rarely do with star players.
But Curry took it in stride. After the match, he said he wanted to “be coached like everyone else”, while Kerr praised his rare combination of superstardom and coachability.
In Wednesday’s episode of his podcast.Teammate Draymond Green offered an interesting reaction to the fiery incident.
“When I saw it, I just walked up to Steph and assured her, ‘Yeah, we’re good. Fuck it. Let’s move on,'” Green told co-host Baron Davis on “The Draymond Green Show.” “Just to make sure his head stays in the right place.”
“People respond to things differently and you never know what response you’re going to get.”
Although Green often acts more as an instigator, this situation is one of the rarer cases where he focuses on acting as a peacekeeper to get the most out of his team.
“When you’re one of the best guys on the team, the job goes a lot further than just going out there and playing a good game of basketball. There’s a lot more things you have to deal with when you’re going through these things. So I immediately look at that and I see it, and I watch Steph’s reaction and how he responds to it…
“If he responds negatively, I’ve already told myself that I have to go talk to the coach and make sure that the coach understands the reaction, to make sure that the coach understands that Steph is not responding very well when you yell at him like that. Let’s keep an eye on that. So that’s my way of thinking because, again, you have to be aware of all these things. You have to know what motivates your guys and what doesn’t.
“So I’m watching that like a hawk. In turn, I’m watching the postgame press conferences. And Steph says, ‘No, I want to be coached like everyone else.’ That statement lines up with how you continued playing after you and Steve had your moment.
“So, great, I wash my hands and move on to the next thing.”
Green went on to emphasize the importance of those seemingly insignificant interactions because they can still lead to bigger problems down the road for a team with championship aspirations.
This explanation offers an incredibly intriguing look into the mind of Green’s emotional intelligence, although that may not be how many NBA fans would characterize him. However, it’s a credit to how Green became a pillar of the Warriors’ dynasty over the last decade.
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