Warriors forward Draymond Green is standing by his podcast after he floated a conspiracy theory about why New York Knicks star Karl-Anthony Towns didn't play due to personal reasons in Tuesday's game between the teams at Madison Square Garden.
Following the Warriors' 121-119 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night at Barclays Center, Green addressed his comments made on Wednesday's episode of "The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis," where he said Towns missed the game because he didn't want to face Golden State wing and former teammate Jimmy Butler.
Green was asked by a reporter after Thursday's game if he had seen the reaction to his comments and if he knew that Towns said he missed the game so he could be with family following the tragic death of a close friend, Sarah Holtzman (h/t The New York Post).
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"Oh man, that's unfortunate," Green told reporters in Brooklyn. "I'm sorry to hear that. That sucks. But my comments that I made was what I heard, was this and that's what I heard. So I do send my well wishes to him and his family. It's inevitable. We all experience death in one way or another and we'll all experience it in the same way one day. So, it's unfortunate and you never wish that on anybody.
"But the 'Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis' must go on. I definitely wish him well and wish their family well in grieving because we all go through that and it's never easy for anyone. But the 'Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis' will go on."
Q "You seen reaction to your KAT comments [that he ducked game v Warriors]? Were you aware of circumstances?"
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) March 7, 2025
Draymond "No"
Q "He was at funeral for family friend"
Draymond "Oh man…But what I heard was…what I heard…I send well wishes…but the Draymond Green Show will go on" pic.twitter.com/jy0RICbUvv
Green and Davis recorded their show Wednesday, the day after the Warriors rallied to beat the Knicks, and the four-time champion offered what amounts to rumors regarding Towns' absence.
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"Some would say he didn't play because Jimmy was in the building," Green said. "I don't know. I saw KAT's pops yesterday at the game and it's always love. I got mad love for the OG. His pops is an incredible man. But yeah, they said KAT ain't play because Jimmy came into town, and you know him and Jimmy had the infamous practice in Minnesota. So that's the thing. I don't know."
Draymond Green, grinning, on KAT missing game vs Warriors due to death of family friend:
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) March 6, 2025
“Some would say he didn't play because Jimmy was in the building…They said KAT ain't play because Jimmy came into town” pic.twitter.com/7je0lTEelf
Towns, who played in the Knicks' overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, spoke to reporters before the game at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday about why he didn't play Tuesday night.
“This is one of those moments where I had to be there for my family and be there for the kids that lost somebody really special to them,” Towns said (h/t The New York Post).
Green missed the mark with his comments on his podcast, and given a chance to offer sympathy and contrition, he missed the mark again.
If Towns has anything to say to Green, he'll have a chance when the Knicks visit Chase Center on Saturday, March 15.