Klay Thompson may not be the only Golden State Warriors star seething over not making the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team.
In a recent episode of JJ Redick’s “The Old Man and The Three” podcast, Warriors forward Draymond Green gave a theory for why he was left off the list of the league’s 75 greatest players ever — because he got suspended in the 2016 NBA Finals and missed out on winning a Finals MVP.
“The one thing, when I look back on it, that bothers me is I would’ve been the Finals MVP,” said Green. “And that totally changes the narrative. Good luck leaving me off the NBA 75 if I was Finals MVP. Good luck even having a debate if I’m a Hall of Famer or not if I was Finals MVP.
“When I look back on that from a selfish standpoint, which I rarely do, I would have been Finals MVP and that changes the course of everything,” Green added.
You may recall that Green was suspended for Game 5 of that series against the Cleveland Cavaliers for striking LeBron James in the groin region. The Warriors were leading 3-1 at the time, but Green’s suspension completely flipped the momentum of the Finals and allowed the Cavs to come back to win. Green also had 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game in the series, putting him in the mix for Finals MVP if the Warriors had won.
Of course, there were many Finals MVP winners who did not make the NBA 75 team, including Chauncey Billups, Tony Parker, Joe Dumars, and Cedric Maxwell. Additionally, Green, though he is a three-time NBA champion and Defensive Player of the Year, lacks the singular excellence that many of the NBA 75 players had. On the bright side for Green though, at least his suspension in the 2016 Finals worked out well in at least one way.
Photo: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
