Draymond Green says he has great respect for Kyrie Irving‘s courage and character after he forced his way out of Cleveland this summer.
Draymond Green talked about Kyrie’s exit from Cleveland and a bit more after today’s presser in Oakland https://t.co/LzuZtbWfPe
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) September 12, 2017
Green wasn’t surprised by Irving’s decision, and if anything, it made him respect the All-Star guard even more.
Draymond Green with plenty of thoughts on the Kyrie Irving trade pic.twitter.com/mHEcPQ75DM
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) September 12, 2017
Green says people shouldn’t be shocked that Irving no longer wanted to play alongside LeBron James.
Per The Athletic:
“I wouldn’t necessarily say surprised. I’d say more than anything, (it upped) the respect level I have for him,” Green said of Irving.
“That’s tough to do. I don’t think people take into account he put so much pressure on himself by doing that,” Green added.
“But the willingness to do that, knowing the pressure that comes with that and saying I’m ready to do it, let’s do it. That’s what stood out to me more than anything. It’s not the surprise of ‘hey, Kyrie wants to leave,’ that happens all the time. It happened with Shaq and Kobe. It’s happened with a ton of other guys in the NBA over the course of the years. But for him to be willing to step out and say hey man — a lot of people would say LeBron’s the greatest player in the world — and I don’t say this in disrespect to LeBron, but speaking of Kyrie, to say, ‘I don’t want to play with him no more, I want my own thing.’ Because you have to deliver with that. He’s basically saying I’m ready to deliver. That’s big, that says a lot. In saying that, and once again, he wasn’t a free agent, so he could’ve gotten traded anywhere. But he’s pretty much said I don’t care where I go, I’m gonna make it happen. I think that says a lot about who he is as a competitor. Like his character, that says a lot about him.”
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