The Golden State Warriors' Draymond Green commented on the New York Knicks' recent trades at the deadline, and he seemed to push back on the notion they may be an NBA Finals contender.
After trading for OG Anunoby on Dec. 30 and acquiring Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks from the Detroit Pistons on the day of the trade deadline, the Knicks may have improved, but Green's not ready to put them in the Finals just yet.
“The New York Knicks, they made out extremely well. … They got Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks and OG Anunoby without giving up a single first-round pick. That's insane. The New York Knicks got better,” Green said. Does that ultimately put them in the conference finals, like Stephen A. (Smith) been talking? I see a lot of people like, ‘Oh they're going to the Finals.' They got better, but I don’t know if I want to get that far ahead of myself just yet. I need to see more.”
“The New York Knicks got better. Does that ultimately put them in the conference finals?… I don’t know if I want to get that far ahead of myself just yet.”
Draymond Green on the Knicks’ trade deadline additions 🧐
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— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) February 10, 2024
Knicks and Warriors' very different seasons
The Knicks, who will be without Anunoby for at least three weeks after he underwent elbow surgery, currently sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with a 33-19 record. They rattled off nine consecutive victories from Jan. 17 to Feb. 3 before dropping a nationally televised home game to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Jalen Brunson has led the way for the Knicks so far this season, making the first All-Star team of his career while averaging a career-high 27.2 points and 6.5 assists. Julius Randle was also selected as an All-Star, but he will miss the game in Indianapolis and likely a few more weeks after the All-Star break due to a dislocated shoulder, which he suffered against the Miami Heat on Jan. 27.
The veteran additions of Anunoby, Bogdanovic, and Burks cost New York young players such as Quentin Grimes, R.J. Barrett, and Immanuel Quickley, as well as deep bench players Ryan Arcidiacono and Evan Fournier, and a 2024 second-round draft pick. The Knicks also acquired Malachi Flynn from the Toronto Raptors in the Anunoby trade before shipping him to Detroit to get back Bogdanovic and Burks.
Unlike the Knicks, Green and the Warriors have struggled immensely this season. Despite winning its last three games, Golden State is tied for 10th place in the Western Conference with a 24-25 record. And Green, in particular, has been a distraction to his team.
Green has missed nearly half of the Warriors' game this season, in large part due to on-court behavior that has led to suspensions. The former NBA Defensive Player of the Year has been suspended twice by the league this season for a combined 17 games.
In November, the NBA handed down a five-game suspension for choking Rudy Gobert during a scuffle between the Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves. The more recent suspension was initially deemed indefinite after Green struck Jusuf Nurkic during a game against the Phoenix Suns in December. The incident technically led to a 12-game suspension, but Green missed 16 games total.
The Knicks host the Warriors on Feb. 29, which will give Green an up-close look at New York for the first time this season. The two teams will meet again in San Francisco on March 18.
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