Draymond Green revisited the 2022 incident in which he punched former Golden State Warriors teammate Jordan Poole, admitting that he reacted based on past experiences rather than the situation in front of him.
Speaking on The Pivot Podcast, Green said he reached a point where his instincts took over during the altercation, causing him to lose perspective for a brief moment.
“For five seconds, I forgot where I was at because I immediately went to what I know. But what you know don’t really work here,” Green said.
The incident occurred during the Warriors’ 2022 training camp before their championship defense. A video of the confrontation between Green and Poole became public, showing Green striking Poole during a practice dispute. The Warriors later addressed the situation internally, with Green stepping away from the team temporarily before returning.
Green, now a four-time NBA champion with Golden State, said his background shaped how he initially processed the conflict.
“I’ve had a bunch of situations like that growing up. Sometimes I was the guy who get hit, sometimes I wasn’t. Regardless, we move on. That’s how I’ve always approached it,” Green said.
The veteran forward explained that his expectation was that the situation would be resolved quickly, based on how he had handled similar moments throughout his life.
“So when that situation happened, I’m like, all right, cool. We move on. And then when we couldn’t, I was like, huh?” Green said.
Green acknowledged that the experience forced him to recognize differences between his own upbringing and Poole’s.
“For a while, it made me think, man, this dude nothing like me. Because when those things happen, you just move on,” Green said. “But it taught me so much. It taught me, you’re right, he may not be like you. He ain’t from where you from. The things you went through, the way you had to come up, he may not have came up like that.”
The situation became one of the most discussed moments of the Warriors’ dynasty era. Golden State went on to win 44 games during the 2022-23 season but was eliminated by the Sacramento Kings in the first round of the playoffs.
Green said the incident remained a learning experience despite his years of NBA experience.
“Everybody says, ‘Oh man, but you was 10 years in. You should know better.’ Still learning nine years in,” Green said.
Green added that the mistake became part of his personal growth.
“It’s lessons like that that ultimately make me who I am to this day because, man, I messed that up,” he said.
The Warriors eventually moved in a different direction with Poole, trading him to the Washington Wizards in 2023 as part of the deal that brought back veteran guard Chris Paul. Green remained with Golden State, continuing his role as a central figure in the franchise’s core.
