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The Golden State Warriors were forced to put out some fires early in the season, as the implosion of a heated locker room argument between teammates Draymond Green and Kevin Durant saw a sudden mood shift in what had been an otherwise dominant start to the regular season. General manager Bob Myers says his team dealt with these internal issues as well as they could have, given the massive spotlight around them.
“Just being a decent human being. That’s like anything in life. This just happens to be on a bigger stage. You’re just doing your job,” said Myers when asked how the Warriors dealt with the early-season drama, according to Mark Medina of the San Jose Mercury News. “Everybody covers our organization. We’re fortunate to be in a spot where people care about our team as much they do, both good and bad. It was just being a high group of character people and leaning on Steve [Kerr]. That allows us to get through anything, to be honest. I always hearken back to losing Game 7 at home. That was a defining moment. That was a high level of adversity. To respond the way we have, it’s a credit to leadership to Steve’s side and also the players.”
Green was under large scrutiny after details of their argument became public, but to his credit, he made the decision to seek out Durant, apologize and explain his emotions — something that soon enough blew over as the games went on.
The Warriors suspended Green for one game for what they deemed conduct detrimental to the team, a suspension which he accepted as he battled through injuries.
Yet piecing his friendship with Durant was work Green would have to do on his own, a friendship that has survived largely due to his strong rapport with Durant.
“It’s all organic. It’s all life stuff. We all decide when to engage in relationships and how to do it. Whether it’s addressing the team, whether it’s a private conversation and whether it’s done in person and whether it’s done on the phone or whether it’s done after a game,” said Myers. “It’s a very imperfect approach. But the basic thing is you have to build enough rapport and equity with whatever relationships you have at work. When things are difficult, you have a foundation to move off of. That’s the work you put in on days when everything is good. We’re all going to have days that are difficult. But if we’ve not worked and communicated during the good moments, if all we do is address when things are difficult, it’s not going to be as effective. It’s the work we put in each day that allows us to overcome the difficult moments.”
Durant and Green have yet to butt heads in that manner since, letting bygones be bygones and remaining focus on the task at hand — an NBA championship.
