Dray's favorite All-Star memories + Dunk & 3-point Contest picks | Draymond Green Show

What's up everybody? Welcome back to the Draymond Green Show. We have a special Valentine's Day episode for y'all. Obviously, this is our last top of the show before All-Star break. I am excited as hell that All-Star break is here. You know, people always confused, like All-Star break is the halfway point in the season. All-Star break is 60 games into the season. When we get back from All-Star break, we have 22 games left. So, and tonight is game 60 at the Los Angeles Clippers. I am here in my hotel room in LA. The Dubs got a big win last night over Washington and we needed it. Try to stabilize this ship going into the break and try to close it out tonight with another win. Before we get into this episode, as you all know, I am a Michigan State alumni. That is home for me. So last night's tragic events, it hit me in a different way. I wanna send my love to the Spartan community. I wanna send my love to the families that are affected by this tragedy. Obviously those that, were killed and also those that were wounded, but also the families that just are part of the community. I still have a bunch of friends there. I have friends that still live there that are from there. And quite frankly, it's, you know, it's East Lansing, Michigan. It's not really something that you're accustomed to. You know, we've been having a ton of these mass shootings in America. And quite frankly, you see 'em and you're kind of becoming numb to it, right? Like you just see 'em so often that it's kind of like, "Oh, there goes another one, there goes another one." And it's sad to know that, you know, as a people, that's where we are. It's just like, "It's another one." But that is the reality. Right. Like that's the reality that we just keep having these things over and over and over again. And you're numb to it until you're not. You're numb to it until it hits close to home like it hit for me last night. Quite honestly, and not to make the moment about myself, but quite honestly, growing up in Saginaw, Michigan, When I went to Michigan State, I felt I made it out. Like, for the first time in my life, I didn't feel like I had to look over my shoulder when I'm walking around. That leaving the house and making it back home wasn't necessarily a threat. Like, it wasn't a danger that you're quite worried about. I leave the house and walk campus at 1:00 AM, or my dorm and walk campus at 1:00 AM. Not quite doing that on the north side of Saginaw. And so when I got to Michigan State, it was like I made it out. And it was such a special thing. You know, you raise a kid and you send your kid to college and it's like, man, I've done it. Like I did my job, I got my kid to college.

Whew.

I can breathe now. I'd imagine that's the feeling that a parent has. And to get that call that it's not that, it's brutal. It's brutal. And so I sympathize with them. But as I was saying, when I left Saginaw, I was like, man, I made it out. There's a kid at Michigan State from Saginaw that felt or feels that they made it out. And that feeling has been rocked a bit. To know that that kid from Saginaw or Detroit or Pontiac or Flint or you name it, that feeling is compromised for them, that hurts me. That hurts because as kids growing up in those environments, Like your main goal is just to get out of that so you don't have to deal with that, so you don't have those same worries, so you don't face those same dangers on a daily. And to know that you go to a place like Michigan State and to have that worry again, that's brutal, that's scary. And no, when I say that, I'm not saying Michigan State is just that place. I'm more so saying— Yeah. Like I made it to a university, an incredible, great university. And to have that worry again, that irks me, that bothers me. Like I feel for those kids. I feel for that kid. I feel for those parents. I feel for the Michigan State community.

Draymond Green.

So I just wanna send my love and my prayers to the community. East Lansing, Michigan State University holds a huge, huge, huge special place in my heart. I send my love, my support, and my prayers that we can stop having these situations. Like I said, you become numb to it until it's, until you're not, until it hits close to home. You're like, whoa, wow. You know, you've been seeing these things happen all over and you kind of got this feeling of like, man, like it's a crazy time and crazy places. And you never truly imagine that it's gonna be you or close to your home, your people. Yeah. So I just wanted to start by sending my love back home to my community. Something's gotta change, man. Some things has to change. We can't keep dealing with the same thing and becoming numb to it like it's not a problem. It's a problem. It's a big problem.

Draymond Green.

We're gonna move on to basketball, but again, I send my love and my well wishes to the East Lansing and Michigan State University community. In moving to the NBA, like I said, the Warriors topped the Wizards last night at home, which was a huge win for us to stabilize kind of the ship and losing 2 in a row. Two very winnable games, two that we probably should have won. Going into the break, kind of want to go in with some momentum. We have another opportunity to do that tonight. But just my takeaway from the game last night, and to give up 60% from the field and still win a game is crazy. And saying that, to give up 60% in general is crazy. Like at some point the defense has to come along. You know, you can keep talking about like, oh man, you know, we'll be fine and you know, it'll all be better and we'll turn the corner. But if you don't play defense, if you like, no disrespect to the Washington Wizards. By the way, every time you say that you disrespect, but I'm really not disrespecting Washington Wizards. Bradley Beal, as we know, is one of the best scorers in the NBA, but the Washington Wizards isn't one of the best scoring teams in the NBA. At least I don't think. Maybe the numbers will support and say they are. Quite frankly, I don't think so, nor are they one of the most talented teams in the NBA. And to give up 60%, 126 points, actually ridiculous. So we can keep talking to— Oh, it'll turn. No, these things don't turn unless you make them turn. Like, seasons just don't change unless you do the things that are hurting you. You change those things. And quite frankly, we have not changed those things because to give up 60 points, uh, 60% from the field, 126 points, that's not okay. Nor are you going to be the Great team that way. Very weird game for me. I got into the early foul trouble and like never really found a rhythm. And it's crazy because I felt like I was about to have a great game. Like I felt like my game was about to be amazing. I hit him with the oop-dee-doo scoop-dee. And our body was feeling great, moving amazing. I felt incredible. I thought I was about to have a great game and it was derailed by foul trouble. That sucked. But in saying that, shout out to Draymond Green. J-Mike came out splashing from everywhere. 4 for 4 from 3, 5 for 5 from the field, 14 points, couple dimes. I've said this before and I'm looking forward to Draymond continuing to get more and more minutes. I really think he'll, he's gonna be a huge help to us and he's starting to, really show why it was so important that we wanted to go and get him. You know, once he took the buyout from OKC and he's starting to show that. And so I'm looking forward to him getting more opportunities because he brings a certain physicality to our team that we need and a certain dog mindset. One thing J. Mike always say like, man, that's that soft shit. Yeah. Like everything he called everything soft, but that's the mindset that he plays with and we need that. And so it's good to see him, you know, had an opportunity last night and continue to produce in his minutes. And I'm hoping that he'll continue to see more minutes. At some point we have to start talking about Dante DiVincenzo being one of the best offseason acquisitions. Dante has been absolutely incredible. He's a much better defender than I knew or thought. He's an absolute ball hawk. Gets his hands on a lot of ball, always in the right place. Shoots the ball better than I thought. And handles the ball better than I thought. Like can actually make plays off the dribble and play in the pick and roll. And so at some point we gotta start talking about Dante being one of the best offseason pickups, but that goes hand in hand with winning. Right? Like, you win and everyone's talking about that. You're 29 and 28, or 30 and 29, whatever the hell we are, who knows what the record is, something of that nature, then no one talks about it. And young people, that is why it's important to win. Because winning— if— when you win, everyone eats. When you win, everyone gets attention. There's All-Star bids, there's this, there's that. When you win. When you lose, no one cares. And so for you young guys out there, you young women, whoever is listening to this podcast and you wonder like, what do I need to do for a team? You need to make sure that team win. If you want accolades, you need to make sure that team wins or you be as good as Steph Curry. You tell me which one is easier. Quite frankly, I personally think contributing to winning and making sure a team win is much easier than being Steph Curry. So for you young people out there, note that. Dante DiVincenzo is having an absolutely incredible year. No one's talking about it because of where our record sits. So note that. Don't think it's all about scoring. Don't think it's all about the flash. No, no, no. It's very simple. You win, you get the attention. You lose, and I mean, you get the attention, everyone gets the attention. You lose, no one cares. You're 500, who cares? So we need to change that. We need to win some games because the guys who are playing well and should get their due should get their due. And they should not be not getting their due because we're not winning.

Yeah.

So let's close this breakout, or let's close this first 70% of the season out with a dub. It's a big one for us. We're not too far off from the Clippers in the standings. Obviously we're in the same division. You wanna not stumble in the All-Star break, but you wanna roll in the All-Star break and try to use that momentum coming outta All-Star break. So that's where we are. And that is what's needed. Speaking of All-Star break, Anthony Edwards, All-Star, was a replacement. Who cares? You're an All-Star, young fella. Well deserved. Well deserved. De'Aaron Fox, guest of the Draymond Green Show. We talked about this. We talked about him winning. The Kings don't win, De'Aaron, that's on you. Yeah. He doing that. You should be an All-Star. He did that. Congratulations to those two fellas. Pascal Siakam, All-Star replacement in the East. Man, I had no clue that that was only, like, that this is only Pascal's second All-Star. I feel like Pascal has made All-NBA more than one time. Yeah. Once. I could be wrong on that. I didn't do any research on that. I just feel like at one point I think he 100% made All-NBA First Team before, if I'm not mistaken. Or did he make Second Team?

I think he's made, he's been on the All-NBA teams twice. I'm not exactly sure which teams.

Gimme one. I thought so. So the fact that he's only been on one All-Star team, that is interesting. Because it's usually the opposite way around. Like—

Yeah, he was on the All-NBA Second Team in 2020, All-NBA Third Team in 2022 when he was not an All-Star.

That is crazy. And again, All-Star break is so deep into the season. So like what did he do the last 26-odd games that he didn't do in the first 56 that made him All-NBA but not an All-Star? That's an interesting one. But congrats to those guys. Well deserved on all fronts. Always great to see guys get their due. You know, that feeling of being an All-Star never gets old. Happy to see the first-time guys get the opportunity and also happy to see Pascal back. I know how hard Pascal work. We crossed paths a lot in training in the summer. We played pickup UCLA in the summer. Pascal get a lot of, lot, a lot of work in with Rico Hines in the summer. Shout out to Aunt Rico Hines, one of the best player development guys in the league. And he continued to pour into guys and to see guys get rewarded. I know how it is for me with Travis Walton, like how he's sharing my success, you know, and how important my success is to him. So I know how Rico feels. So congratulations to the OG. Congratulations to Pascal, Ant-Man, De'Aaron Fox. Absolutely amazing. Well deserved. Man, Jackson got a question on here for me. What is my favorite All-Star moment that I've seen in person? My favorite All-Star moment that I've seen in person. My favorite All-Star, I'll give you 3 of them. One was Steph's game last year in Cleveland. Just the 3 from Dang near half court and turning around, the turnaround 3 in the corner where he, to the fade, that went in? I'm outta here. That, and then in that game, another one of my favorite moments was watching LeBron score the final bucket in that game in Cleveland, All-Star in Cleveland, target score.

Yeah.

Bron hit it on the fadeaway. You know, he going right shoulder, bucket, very fitting back in Cleveland. That was dope to see. My third favorite All-Star moment that I saw in person was Aaron Gordon in the dunk contest versus Zach Lavine. Zach Lavine was absolutely incredible. And Zach deserved to win that dunk contest. Ultimately felt like Aaron Gordon had a couple better dunks that time around. And again, it wasn't that he deserved to beat Zach because you get scored dunk per dunk. It's not a cumulative score. If it was a cumulative score, then maybe, you know, who knows? But Zach completed all of his dunks and they were all incredible. And I think at the, towards the end, either Aaron ran outta dunks or he missed it. I can't quite remember how it all went down in the end, but. I mean, when he went over the Magic mascot underneath the butt, like, that's crazy. That was absolutely amazing to watch. If you go back and watch those highlights, you see yours truly in a bright yellow, canary yellow leather, boom bop, whatever you wanna call it. That was a very fun moment for me. And then my favorite memory from an All-Star is my first All-Star in Toronto was Kobe's last All-Star. And just sharing in the locker room with him, sharing the huddles with him. Like Pop let us draw up some plays. I have a play where I'm sitting in the— I have a picture of a play where I'm sitting in the coach's chair and like I'm drawing up a play for Kobe. That's crazy to me. So that was my favorite, my absolute favorite All-Star moment, my All-Star memory, I would say. I was just sharing with Kobe in his last All-Star game. That was also Dirk's last All-Star game too, if I'm not mistaken. But that was such a beautiful, incredible moment. And RIP to Kobe. We all miss you, brother, as you know. OG to a lot of us. That hole will never be filled. And before we get outta here, let's talk through our dunk contest, our 3-point contest, and our prediction for the MVP. As you know, yours truly will be there with TNT for the festivities on Saturday. And then also our cast on T— our telecast on TBS, along with the Inside the NBA crew. I'll be working the sidelines very similar to what I was doing last year. Feel like I can get it better. Maybe interview some fans, you know, we'll see. But I'm looking forward to that. That'll be fun. We have Tyrese Halliburton and Buddy Hill teammates. We have Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons teammates. Laurie Markkanen and Kevin Huerter, JT, Tyler Herro in the 3-point contest. Who do I have winning it? I got Dame Dolla winning the 3-point contest, but I will tell you a dark horse in this because he does not jump on his shot. It's just pick up here, the funny release. Tyrese Halliburton is a dark horse because it's just not much motion in his shot. It's not much knee bend. It's not, it's literally, And so he's a dark horse, but I'm taking Dame Dolla to win it. We got the dunk contest. Very, very, very disappointed to see Shaden Sharp pull out of the dunk contest. Disappointed as a fan because I don't know his reason. I'm not here to judge him for whatever his reason is, but just disappointed as a fan. 'Cause that kid got crazy bounce. And it sucks to not see the guys with crazy bounce do the dunk contest. Like it sucks not to see Ja Morant ever do the dunk contest. Zion Williamson ever do the dunk contest. Hopefully one day we will see Shaedon Sharpe do the dunk contest. But like, you see these guys, especially these young superstars with bounce, and to not do the dunk contest, it kind of sucks. Like, you wanna see that, like that excitement. I think that excitement is good for the NBA. The dunk contest used to be one of the best events at All-Star Weekend. So it sucks not to see the young bouncy fellas who jump out the gym, especially young superstars, not do the dunk contest. Like I remember back in the day, Kobe and them doing the dunk contest and all that. Like it was huge. So hopefully one day those young guys do it. But those are my picks for the 3-point contest. For the dunk contest, you got KJ Martin, Trey Murphy, Jericho Sims, Matt McClung. We have watched Matt McClung for years. Crazy dunks. Do Matt McClung, after these years in the G League and that grind, still got them same legs? I played with Mac. We had him in training camp this year and he showed me a couple times like, "Oh, I still got it." So that's gonna be interesting. My pick for this one, I'm gonna go Mac McClung. That is my choice for the dunk contest and my predictions for All-Star MVP. Shout out to Lauri Markkanen getting a start in Salt Lake City, where I think he's building something. I think he'll be there for a while. Shout out to him. My choice for MVP is Giannis. Giannis. Giannis been rocking and you know Giannis gonna play the All-Star Game like he's suiting up Milwaukee versus Philly or Milwaukee versus whoever you think is going to Boston. That's how Giannis approach All-Star Game. So I got Giannis as my MVP. That is my take on the All-Star Game. Make sure you catch me on TBS during the game, during the festivities. I'll be right there. Check your boy out. Check All-Star Weekend out. And again, I send my love and my prayers to Michigan State University. Love y'all. Until next time, that's a wrap from the Draymond Green Show. Peace. What's up everybody? It's Draymond Green. Make sure you subscribe to the Volumes YouTube channel below so you don't miss any more of this great content going forward.