Kevin Durant made some waves on Tuesday night when he claimed an official was looking to eject him from the Golden State Warriors’ game against the New York Knicks, and when Draymond Green found himself brought up in a discussion of it on ESPN’s NBA Countdown on Wednesday he was none too pleased.
A frustrated Durant said the official was “in his feelings” after a frustrated Durant slammed a basketball down on the court, and later was ejected when he argued over a no-call with another official. Durant was clearly angry about the ejections, and complained after the game. But on Wednesday he had a change of heart, saying he was a “jerk” and admitting he’s ready to accept whatever punishment the NBA hands down.
That change of heart didn’t stop everyone from debating what’s going on with Durant, who has gone from one career ejection to five, which leads the league, in just over half of a season. On Wednesday night, Brian Windhorst appeared on ESPN’s NBA Countdown and argued that Durant has made himself a target to referees, comparing his issues to teammate Draymond Green’s propensity to find conflict with officiating.
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“Guys, Draymond Green said every referee should be fired,” Windhorst said. “KD’s been chewing on guys’ ears all season long.”
“KD is right: he is being targeted,” Windhorst continued. “Because he’s made himself a target.”
The comment doesn’t directly say that Green has influenced Durant, but it’s easy to jump to that conclusion given the juxtaposition Windhorst used there. In any case, Green wasn’t pleased that he was included in the discussion that began as a conversation about Durant. Just minutes after the segment aired, Green posted a subtweet on Twitter that was almost certainly aimed at the ESPN reporter.
Don’t bring my name up No neck. I’m not the topic of y’all conversation today.
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) January 25, 2018
It’s certainly a cheap shot at Windhorst, but it’s clear that Green isn’t happy about being brought into a mess that Durant himself tried to diffuse. Unfortunately for he and Durant apologizing after the fact doesn’t make nearly as many headlines as the initial outbursts, and Green would clearly prefer not to be brought up in every conversation about someone getting mad at referees.
