Draymond Green never has been one to refrain from weighing in on a hot topic, especially when it comes to the Warriors veteran's longtime adversary Rudy Gobert.
So when the Minnesota Timberwolves big man was relegated to a bench role in France's win over Canada on Tuesday in the 2024 Paris Olympics quarterfinals, Green took to his podcast and questioned conflicting stories on why Gobert played limited minutes while sneaking in a subtle diss.
"France had a very interesting plot twist going on," Green said on "The Draymond Green Show" episode released Wednesday. "Rudy Gobert said he had surgery on his finger or something, and France's coach said he thought the matchups [were] an issue, and so Rudy didn't start because of the matchups. We don't know what's true. I don't think we have any reason to believe Rudy's lying, except for the coach said that it was for the matchups.
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"And in the three minutes that Rudy checked in, [Shai Gilgeous-Alexander] started getting off. [Victor Wembanyama] had a rough night, but Coach said, 'I can't have both my bigs not playing great,' and, well, you decide who's got to go. I know who I'd pick, but I'll leave it to you to pick.
"But to be taken out of the lineup on any other team in the Olympics as an NBA player not named Team USA is kind of crazy."
Gobert played just three minutes and put up zero points, one rebound and one turnover in France's 82-73 win over Gilgeous-Alexander and Co. And while he did lay some blame on his injured finger, which was in a splint after the game, Gobert pointed to the matchups as well.
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"I have confidence in my teammates, the coaches," Gobert said, per L'Equipe (h/t ESPN). "The plan worked given how we started the match. There were several reasons why I didn't play, between the matchups but also what can happen in training, with the injuries.
"It was a good decision in any case. It's a great adjustment from the coach. I'm grateful to be here today. I was on the operating table last night. To be able to play in an Olympic quarterfinal, it was incredible. [The finger injury is] nothing serious, that's all I can say."
And while France coach Vincent Collet also stated Gobert's reduced role came as the center dealt with his finger injury, he told reporters Gobert had been cleared to play after an MRI, per ESPN, and noted the decision to bring Gobert off the bench was because of matchups and the desire to play a smaller lineup with Wembanyama at center.
It appears it was a perfect storm of circumstances that led to Gobert being benched against Canada, though Green might not think so. But given his run-ins with Gobert on the NBA court over the years, it's no surprise Green might be leery of the big man.
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