Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was brutally honest about the effect of Draymond Green punching Jordan Poole in October on Tuesday but said he still wants Draymond back.
The nine-time NBA champion, who's coached the Dubs to four titles since 2015, was asked repeatedly about the “incident”“To be fair, you guys have asked about the incident. I didn’t just bring it up,” Kerr said of the punch, before being asked about the importance of Green coming back, despite the baggage that comes with him.
“Look, if Draymond’s not back, we’re not a championship contender. We know that,” Kerr said. “He’s that important to winning and to who we are, so I absolutely want him back. He’s a competitor. He’s an incredible defensive player. We can check all of those boxes. And he and I have built a really special relationship that has run the gamut over the years. We’ve had our share of run-ins, but we’ve been through so much. We really care about each other and work together well.
“He knows that he had a great season this year from a basketball perspective,” Kerr continued. “But he knows that he also compromised things by what happened back in October.” Green had a typical Draymond season in 2022-23, finishing with a high-level triple-single for the fifth straight year, averaging 8.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game while shooting 52.7% from the field — the best shooting percentage of his career.
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