You cannot call yourself a true basketball fan if at least once in your life you haven’t thought about going pro. We mean, we all have, right? It’s almost every kid’s dream in the States to make it in the NBA one day. Back in the day, aiming to become a hooper meant you had to put in a lot of effort in the game that you loved. However, things have changed with time. Now, there’s a lot more than just hard work and talent that goes into becoming an NBA player. With time, children have started to train and act like pros from a very tender age. Is it for the better or worse? 

We are all aware that making it to the NBA is no child’s play. It requires utmost commitment and hard work to reach the league. As a result, young athletes have started to train like pros at a very tender age. To put it simply, it seems like the kids have stopped enjoying the game. This is a growing concern in not just basketball, but all sports. LeBron James had negative opinions about this regime. He recently took it upon himself to speak about the growing trainer problem in the youth, and now Golden State Warriors veteran Draymond Green shared a similar opinion.

“With where the game has gone, like you need those resources in order to be successful,” Green said on his podcast. “I feel like basketball used to be a poor man’s game. Like we all played it, poor kids played it, we were poor, we had nothing, and it was our way out. Basketball is not a poor kids’ game no more; basketball is a rich kids’ game. Like the days of seeing LeBron James from Akron, Ohio, from a single mom, those days are numbered. Because if you don’t have the resources these days, like you can’t make it like it’s become a rich kids game, and basketball didn’t used to be that.” He added. 

The Warriors center pointed out that with the way the game is going, soon there might be no stories like LeBron James’. But why? Because it might not be possible if players such as the LA Lakers’ star need trainers and special workouts to make their dreams come true. The Lakers veteran himself admitted that growing up, he didn’t know much about trainers. “When we were growing up, our parents didn’t know if this kid had a trainer,” James said. “[Now parents think] if my kid is not being trained five days a week, he’s not going to make it,” echoing a similar opinion to Green’s. 

Draymond Green further stated that the beauty of basketball is that it’s everyone’s game, and you don’t have to come from a certain background to hoop. Unfortunately, it seems like basketball is losing its essence and becoming accessible only to the rich. This over-reliance on resources might do irreparable damage to the poor man’s game. Hopefully, Draymond Green’s words might spark some kind of change. Meanwhile, he seems to start the change from his own backyard, as he makes a huge claim about his son. 

Draymond Green makes a huge claim for his 8-year-old son

We all know Draymond Green as a vocal leader and an aggressive center. However, just like any other father in the league, the Golden State Warriors superstar would love to see his kid continue his legacy. What makes this situation much more interesting is the fact that his 8-year-old Draymond Green Jr. might already be a diamond in the rough. Although Draymond’s son wants to play soccer, according to his father, he certainly has what it takes to become an NBA star. In fact, he believes that Draymond Green Jr. is a natural. 

While speaking about kids playing the sport on his podcast, ‘The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis,’ the veteran claimed that his 8-year-old has picked up hooping skills without any training.

“I talked on Kimmel the other night about my son, and just like watching him play, and like how he knew how to play, and he liked some of the stuff. I know he picks up on it naturally, just because he’s always around basketball. He watches it, and so you imagine growing up like you did like we did you playing basketball all day the nuances and things you figure out about the game it’s different when somebody just putting you in a position to tell you to do this move like how do you use your creativity how do you learn.” Green said. 

The Warriors veteran said that Draymond Green Jr. was a natural and that he picked up stuff naturally. That’s exactly what he was talking about when he said that the game has become something only the rich can afford. Through his son’s example, he proved that kids need to spend time with basketball rather than someone telling them to perform certain moves. Although Green’s son loves soccer, he hopes that someday he might follow in his footsteps and carry on his legacy in the league. Will that happen? We’ll have to wait and watch.