Draymond Green Responds to NBA Reporter Blasting Warriors Veterans

Yahoo NBA reporter Kevin O'Connor said Wednesday on Threads that Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler are the problem in Golden State.

Reacting to Tuesday night quotes from Green that many believe were directed at Brandin Podziemski and Jonathan Kuminga, O'Connor took to Threads with his take:

"Who cares if Podz says he hopes to be better than Steph Curry? It's ridiculous that Warriors veterans are side-eyeing him—or Jonathan Kuminga or any other young teammates.

"The old guys are the problem in Golden State. Not the youth. Draymond Green has declined and Jimmy Butler has always been a malcontent who has failed to step up in the biggest moments for multiple years now. This is on them more than anyone else.

"Steph Curry is still great and deserves so much better."

Green started his response with "Who said it was the young guys Kevin? I said WE!!" before explaining that he knows much more than O'Connor about winning.

Context for Green-O'Connor Comments

After the Warriors' demoralizing 126-102 loss to the Thunder on Tuesday, Green said in part: "I think everyone has a personal agenda in this league. But you have to make the personal agenda work in the team confines. If it doesn't work, you kinda got to get rid of your agenda. Or, eventually the agenda is the cause of someone getting moved."

ESPN's Anthony Slater reported Wednesday that "several within the organization" gave "eyerolls" when Podz recently said he wants to be better than Curry.

Slater also implied that Green's agenda quote was probably aimed at Podz and Kuminga.

Did O'Connor Make Fair Points?

First, O'Connor might have a point that Green has declined. He's in the midst of a brutal stretch with 17 turnovers and just 20 assists in his last five games. Green is shooting 44.2 percent from three, but the turnovers are hurting the Warriors more than the shooting is helping them. And even if Green fixes the turnover issue, he's won't touch the highs of his 2016 self anymore.

In regards to O'Connor's belief that Butler has failed to step up in the biggest moments for multiple years, Butler played through a pelvis contusion in the 2025 playoffs, which clearly limited him. Using that against him feels unfair. In the 2023 playoffs, he led the eighth-seeded Heat to the Finals, and in the 2020 Finals, Miami's two wins came with Butler dropping 35-plus-point triple-doubles. Perhaps O'Connor is right that Butler's "Playoff Jimmy" moniker is a stretch, but he's succeeded in plenty of the biggest moments over the years.

Regarding O'Connor's belief that the team's struggles are on the old guys more than anyone else, that feels accurate. We already went over that Green is struggling, and Curry has also been in a rut over his last six games. Butler has been the steadiest of the three, but the Warriors need him to take over games instead of deferring so much.

Most importantly, should Green be publicly calling out his teammates? Will this galvanize them and lead to more wins, or will it make things worse? Green knows more about winning than most humans, but this feels like a misstep. At the least, it draws negative attention on Kuminga at a time when the Warriors want to build his trade value.

But if the Warriors respond with their best basketball in the coming days and weeks, perhaps Tuesday's postgame quotes will be seen as a brilliant move.