In this interview, Draymond Green celebrates his fifth All-Defensive First Team selection, reflecting on his career longevity alongside younger stars and legends like Tim Duncan and Chris Paul. He discusses Steve Kerr’s suggestion that Green could start at center for the final stretch of the season, emphasizing the physical toll of anchoring the defense against larger, heavier opponents and how age amplifies that strain. Green elaborates on the defensive matchup challenges the Warriors face, detailing the constant switching onto players such as Anthony Edwards, Julius Randle, Rudy Gobert, and others, and how these responsibilities affect the team’s offensive flow. The conversation then shifts to Tyrese Halliburton’s Reggie Miller‑style choke celebration, with Green expressing both amusement and concern about potential NBA disciplinary action, while also noting Halliburton’s clutch shooting record (four game‑tying or go‑ahead field goals in the final five seconds, ranking third since 1997). The segment ends with light‑hearted banter about whether Spike Lee or Dave Chappelle were present at the game, underscoring the cultural crossover between basketball and entertainment.
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We gotta start this segment by congratulating you, named First Team All-Defensive for the 5th time in your career. 9 All-Defensive teams in a 13-year career. Bro, congratulations.
Appreciate it.
Well deserved. I also wanna add in, which I have been saying all year on the podcast, Steve Kerr said at the end of the season, he mentioned that starting you as center, I think is doable for the last 30 games like we did this year. But as you see, it takes a toll on him. One, congratulations.
Appreciate you, bro.
What do you think about, you know, those comments? 'Cause I agree. I've been saying that all year. When Draymond Green does not have to assume all of the defensive responsibilities, then it makes, it makes the engine, engine turn, right?
First off, thank you. For me to be on All-Defense First Team and look at the guys next to me, 26 years old, 23 years old, 22 years old, 22 years old. I'm sitting there looking at that like, wow, man. Like, I remember being a young guy in the league and like still seeing Tim Duncan making All-Defensive Teams. You know what I'm saying? Like, dang, yo, he's still doing it. And to be just finished, completed year 13, And still up there with those young guys. And like, it's such an honor to be up there with those guys because I remember being that young guy and I know that grind of like, yo, what you striving for? And so to understand their mindset of where they are in their careers and how every day looks like for them and knowing how every day look for me and where I am in my career and to still be up there Bro, it's such an honor and I'm excited to have 5 first teams is a big deal to me and I'll tell you why.
That's huge.
Because it's one thing to be on all defensive team, I love it. But I had the pleasure and honor of having Chris Paul as a teammate last year. And bro, I think CP got like 7 first teams. So it actually inspired me. I said it to CP last year, like, see, you got 7 first teams. And so, I want that, you know what I'm saying? Man, to be on that list is incredible. And as far as Steve, what Steve said, God bless his heart. Yeah, it was real. It is because playing the 5, it's hard. Like, it's hard. And I'm always down to do it, as you know, bro. Like, any challenge you throw my way, I'll take on the challenge. But it's hard battling every night. Guys who outweigh me by 60 to 80 pounds and they—
Or 4 inches, 5 inches.
4, 5, 6, 7 inches taller than me. Height.
Yeah.
It does take a toll. And in most situations for me where I notice it take the toll, like I come out in the first half because I still got my legs and like the J ball is fire. You know what I'm saying? Then I come out in the second half where you've been battling.
You can't even feel it.
You anchoring the defense. You know what I'm saying? I don't think people understand the toll of and what anchoring the defense requires. Like, that mean every possession I have to put myself in a position to stop a fire. You know what I'm saying? To like help stop something. It takes a lot, you know what I'm saying? But like I always say, I'm cut out for it. Whenever our organization need to go to it, I'm right here, let's do it. I ain't gonna never complain about it. But I agree with Steve, if we can have a different starting center and at some point if we need to go to that, cool. But— Yeah. It's a lot. And as I get older and older in this league, it becomes tougher and tougher. These guys get younger, more athletic. And like I said, I think I'm more than capable of hanging with the young guys and the athleticism, but it does take its toll. So I agree.
Yeah, you need a matchup. You can't be matched up with everybody. And, you know, looking at, you know, the time now is, you switching out to a one, you switching out to Anthony Edwards, you switching out to Julius Randle, you switching out to Nas Reid, you got Rudy Gobert, you gotta stand him up, you got Sengun, you got Adams, you trying to stand them up, you trying to switch off to Draymond Green. You know, it becomes the toll, right? Because all— Now all you thinking about is defense, defense, defense, defense, defense, because that's the, only real energy that you have to get that rebound or to stop that pick and roll. So on the offensive end, I always say this, is it takes away from, you know, from you because you are more of a, you're an offensive playmaker for the team. So if you don't feel like you can make a play, you can finish a play, you can shoot the ball to keep the defense honest, then it kind of disrupts the offensive flow. But if you can come in and say, hey, I'm going to guard the power forward all game, and then I'm gonna wind up on Sagoon at the end of the game, then it makes your job easier, right? And it makes anchoring easy, but it also saves a lot of legs, your intellect, you know, and you can get more out of Draymond Green on the offensive end. And you know, that's what I've been saying all year, but I've been saying it taking a toll. That's why I asked, how you feel, man? 'Cause I can see like, you wearing down, right? You wearing down because at every game you gotta push, you gotta push some big dudes around.
You know what I mean? 1000%. Nah, I can feel that. So I agree. When I look back at 2022 when we won that championship, bro, I, and specifically I go back to that Denver series, just about every game we would start Looney on Joker. And then I switch to Joker. And even if it's for the first 6 minutes, bro, again, it makes such a big difference. Even if it's for 6 minutes, Loom battle with him, and then I go battle with him. You know what I'm saying? Like, it makes all the difference in the world. So I'm definitely, I'm rolling. I think I can use that. So I love it.
Congrats, my bro. Congrats.
Appreciate it, my dog.
What do you think about Tyrese Halliburton? He hit the Reggie Miller choke celebration. Oh, that was cold-blooded. Man.
Hey, hey, come on. As much as I love the choke celebration, and I pray to God the NBA don't find him. We take so many things so literal and like in today's day and age, you can't act like you're choking someone.
And like, let's face it.
Oh my gosh. Let's face it.
Come on.
The guy is not really about to choke someone. And so I hope the NBA don't find him because that's what we paying to see. You talk about entertainers being entertainers, you talk about stars being stars on the biggest stage at the Mecca. Like the stars showing up. I pray the NBA don't find him. But I will tell you this about the choke. My favorite thing about the choke was Tyrese after the game saying, "Ah, I don't know if I should have used it in game one." That was—
That's what I'm saying.
That's what I'm saying.
That's my favorite part. That shit can make up.
Ooh.
And may come back to haunt you, Killer.
Ooh, hey, I'm telling you, that was my favorite part of the show. He said, "Ah, I don't know if I should've used it in game 1." But I'm here to say, I think he should use it if they win in game 2. I think he should use it if they win in game 3, game 4, game 5. Yeah, just be the villain. Like, just lean into it at this point now. 'Cause Draymond Green back down the court with Reggie Miller himself in the building. Yeah, that was crazy. With Spike Lee in the building.
Spike wasn't there.
Spike wasn't in the building?
Nah, Spike wasn't in the building.
Oh, I thought Spike was in the building. Okay.
Dave Chappelle was in the building.
That's shocking Spike wasn't in the building. I told you, listen, from where we were sitting, you couldn't see who. You couldn't see it.
They look like magnets.
Yeah, you couldn't. But I thought Spike was. But to run down the court like this, man.
That's ill, bro.
That's crazy. I can't believe you did that.
That's ill. Tyrese Halliburton made 4 game-tying or go-ahead field goals in the final 5 seconds of the 4th quarter. That's 3rd behind Reggie Miller with 5 and LeBron James with 8 since 1997, the year I graduated from high school. You weren't even born yet, bro.
