Draymond Green Show
Draymond Green is irked he won’t be competing for a third gold medal this July at the Summer Olympics in Paris … with the NBA star questioning the reason he was excluded.
Last week, Team USA revealed their 41-player selection pool … of which 12 hoopers will eventually be named to the U.S. Men’s Basketball squad that’ll take on the world in France.
Grant Hill, the team’s managing director, recently said Green wasn’t included because of his on-court incidents this season … believing Draymond needed to work on himself this summer, rather than hoop for Team USA.
Green says that was difficult to hear.
“I wish that [Grant Hill] would have just said that to me. You know especially if you’re going to say that publicly,” Draymond said on his Draymond Green Show on Monday.
“So it hurt me a little bit from a fan standpoint as well. I’m a big fan of Grant Hill, and to know there’s been a personal relationship and to tell me to my face that you’re going to need me for the Olympics and then to publicly find out that.”
It sounds like Draymond isn’t entirely buying Grant’s reason, either … saying, “If I’m not good enough for that roster, just say I’m not good enough.”
Green previously won gold in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2020 … and he’s bummed he won’t have a chance at number three.
“I’ll say this, disappointed? Yeah, of course, like, to have an opportunity to play in three Olympics” the forward admitted on his show.
The debate over Green comes just months after he was suspended following two on-court incidents … where he put Rudy Gobert in a headlock and smacked Jusuf Nurkić.
Green isn’t the only NBA star who was upset about being excluded from the player’s pool … Bradley Beal also expressed disappointment, though he added he’ll still be rooting for Team USA.
The games begin at Bercy Arena on July 27th.