Draymond Green’s latest comments added a new wrinkle to the conversation around his free agency, and they also offered a rare glimpse into how Steve Kerr has handled the veteran forward behind the scenes.
On a recent episode of his podcast, Green said Kerr once told him, “Man, it’s become incredibly hard to support you publicly,” after the controversy surrounding Green’s on-court incidents with Rudy Gobert and Jusuf Nurkić. Green said he answered by telling Kerr not to worry about it.
“My head coach, Steve Kerr, came up to me and he said, ‘Man, it’s become incredibly hard to support you publicly,’ and I said back to him, ‘Don’t, I’m fine. I don’t need you to support me publicly.
I’ll be alright, I can handle the things that I’ve done to bring things upon myself. I can handle them; I deal with my own s-t.”
Green said the exchange left Kerr relieved.
“When I said it to him, I could see the weight lifted off his shoulders. Like, what?
Yeah. Don’t,” Green recalled.
He used the moment to make a broader point about accountability and his frustration with Stephen A. Smith.
“If I can say that to a man that I’ve played underneath his tutelage for the last 12 years, won championships with, grew into the man that I’ve become today underneath, you think I don’t have that same sentiment when it comes to Stephen A. Smith?”
“If I can say that to this man whom I’ve spent countless hours with over the last 12 years. You think I don’t feel the same way when it comes to Stephen A.
Smith?” Green concluded on the incident.
The comments arrive at a time when Green’s future with Golden State is anything but settled. In December, during the 2025-26 season itself, Green and Kerr had an intense disagreement that led to Green’s early exit from a game against the Magic. Kerr later mulled retirement before returning on a two-year extension.
That backdrop makes Green’s next move in free agency even more interesting. It may no longer be a sure thing that he returns to the Warriors, especially with LeBron James seemingly headed to the East rather than to Golden State.
Green is reportedly waiting to see how James’ free agency plays out, after declining his $27.7 million player option to give the front office flexibility to sign James.
For now, there’s still no clear read on Green’s intentions. But one possibility is that he’s less interested in chasing the biggest payday and more focused on finding a chance to compete at a high level again, something he may feel is no longer realistic with the Warriors.
If he does leave this summer, the state of his relationship with Kerr will be one of the first things people want to hear about.
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