Former Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers sharpshooter Nick Young revealed that Warriors forward Draymond Green once tried to punch him in the same way that he punched Jordan Poole before the 2022-23 season.
A video was leaked prior to the 2022-23 campaign of Green unleashing a vicious punch on Poole in practice. The two players remained on the Warriors for the entire 2022-23 season, but Poole was traded to the Washington Wizards this offseason.
Young made his comments about Green following the resurfacing of an old video of the Warriors star swinging at him.
Look what I found randomly today… lol pic.twitter.com/n7GjymsTuX
— UG (@SCDG2330) July 19, 2023
Young then addressed the video.
Draymond try that same punch with me lol ist something about corner dudes he hate lol https://t.co/B2zTYRuzK3
— Nick Young (@NickSwagyPYoung) July 19, 2023
While Green is certainly a winning player, he has been known to have a short temper during his time in the NBA, often getting hit with technical foul calls.
A second-round pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, Green has made quite the name for himself, winning Defensive Player of the Year honors once in his NBA career and making the All-Star Game four times.
He’s been instrumental in the Warriors’ four NBA titles since they drafted him, forming a great trio with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Golden State’s last title came in the 2021-22 season when Green and Poole were still teammates.
Young, who won a title with the Warriors in the 2017-18 season, apparently found his way under Green’s skin during their time as teammates.
Young spent just one season with the Warriors and Green. He appeared in 80 games in the 2017-18 regular season and averaged 17.4 minutes per game. The former Laker shot 37.7 percent from beyond the arc that season, giving the Warriors yet another weapon from 3.
Golden State brought Green back on a new deal this offseason, tying him to the franchise through at least the 2025-26 campaign (and possibly a season longer depending on his player option).
During the 2022-23 season, Green averaged 8.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.0 steal per game for Golden State while shooting 52.7 percent from the field and 30.5 percent from beyond the arc.
While the star forward has certainly made some questionable decisions when it comes to his teammates (like Poole and apparently Young), there’s no doubt that he’s a key player and that Golden State values him highly.
