The Golden State Warriors dropped a tough but disappointing 101-129 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers at Chase Center on Saturday. It was their fourth loss in seven games (the Warriors have dropped another to the Clippers since then) in their quest to gain momentum, with star point guard Steph Curry still sidelined. During a critical timeout, Draymond Green was seen addressing his teammates on the bench with visible intensity and frustration. 

In the clip, while the 2017 Defensive Player of the Year appeared animated, Curry, watching from nearby in casual street clothes, showed a neutral, almost detached stare. The clip quickly spread across social media, and many interpreted Curry’s body language as being tired of his longtime teammate’s heated reactions. Green, however, was quick to dismiss any such talk. 

“I see a lot of people’s reactions, like oh man Steph’s tired of Draymond,” Green said in a recent episode of his podcast, “The Draymond Green Show.” “And quite honestly, what I saw in the video and what I’ve taken away from the video and that I talk to Steph every day. Was that he was in agreeance of what I said, we were getting our a– kicked, so you’re not going to be sitting there smiling or enthused.

“I love how everyone tries to project their energy on about me onto Steph. When, quite honestly, their energy really doesn’t f—– matter when it comes to me.”

Honestly, Green’s frustration was rather understandable. The Warriors had a 2-0 lead to open the game against the Lakers, gave it up soon enough, and never once managed to steal it back. Without Curry, his team struggled considerably with three-pointers, which eventually became the deciding factor as well. No one could contain the dual playmaking of Luka Doncic and LeBron James, while all of the Warriors’ starters finished with a plus/minus worse than -20.

With no clear timeline for Curry, Jimmy Butler being done for the season, and Green’s name appearing in trade rumors, there is currently no situation one can be calm about. Head Coach Steve Kerr also spoke about the same, pointing to the several responsibilities upon Green’s shoulders.

“He’s doing all these things, everything we’re asking. He’s keeping a great attitude on the bench and in the locker room, but he’s frustrated,” Kerr said on the Tom Tolbert Show. Contrary to the “here we go again” opinions that blew up on social media, though, the HC thinks that Green is handling things well.

All the frustration that comes along with getting older and not being able to do the things you could a few years prior. It’s all playing into it and he’s handling it really, really well,” Kerr continued.

Green Downplays the Situation

Curry and Green are the lone survivors of the Warriors dynasty, except Steve Kerr, who is the head coach. They know what it takes to win and lose. Green admits that his daily conversations with Curry reveal a much different reality than what outsiders project.

Now, Green has always been a wildcard, an unpredictable player who could be one of the best defensive players on his day and be ejected on another. However, Green has learned to live with the judgment and doesn’t give much thought to what others say about him. 

“The reality is, you being sick of me you could either not watch or you can shut the hell up,” he said. “Because it don’t matter and you ain’t changing nothing.”

According to Green, he wouldn’t have thought anything of the clip on his own but found the flood of external interpretations genuinely amusing.

The Warriors are having an average season at best, sitting on a 31-30 record. If they fail to make it to the postseason, their win-now era will descend further. The last thing they need right now is external noise debating the internal chemistry in the locker room.