For years, one of the most hated NBA players in Cleveland was Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green.
After all, Green and the Warriors faced off against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals several times.
The Cavs only won the 2016 series, but that series has gone down as one of the most miraculous NBA Finals in the history of the league. Of course, the Cavs came back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat the Warriors.
For Green, he resented the Cavs for years after they “stole a f—— championship” from him, but the veteran recently explained why he now roots for the Cavs in their post-James era.
He did so when he spoke with Cavs star guard Darius Garland. As it turns out, Garland is the reason why Green now holds a soft spot for the Cavs.
“I wouldn’t be shocked, Warriors, Cavs in the finals,” Green said while Garland smiled during a recent conversation. “That’s what D.G. told me. Quite frankly, everyone knows my track record with the Cavs in the finals. There’s not many people that can actually get me to root for the Cavaliers organization because we know the history. Why would I root for them? It just don’t make sense. We know the history of that. I cannot root for the Cavs. Yet, my love for D.G., my little bro, I do root for the Cavs now. So take that to the bank with y’all. I root for the Cavs now because I like to see D.G. do well, not because I love the Cavs organization because y’all still stole a f—— championship from me.”
It’s pretty heartwarming to see Green speak so lovingly about the Cavs rising star. It’s clear the two have a very strong relationship, and it’s also evident that Green is overflowing with pride and joy to see Garland take such massive strides in his career.
So far this season, Garland is averaging an impressive 19.8 points, 8.2 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game. He’s becoming one of the many young faces of the franchise and is a big reason why the Cavs are one of the surprise stories of the league this season.
So far, the Cavs are 33-21 on the season. They’re not too far away from the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
Though the idea of a Cavs-Warriors NBA Finals this season probably seemed pretty laughable just a few months ago, it doesn’t seem all that ridiculous right now.
