Game recognizes game. If you follow basketball long enough, you’ll likely come across that saying a handful of times. In an ultra-competitive sport, there will always be a degree of respect among opponents. Even if teams clash heads for years.

You recently saw that with Draymond Green. His history with the Oklahoma City Thunder runs deep. He helped prevent the Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook era from being crowned with an NBA championship. And as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams have lapped him, he’s made sure to make his opinion be heard.

One of the bigger stories out of the Thunder’s historic 2024-25 season revolved around Green. Not for what happened on the court. The Golden State Warriors had a second-half surge, but were never seen as a serious threat to the Thunder. But for what the four-time NBA champion said in his podcast.

Analyzing the Thunder, Green said they can’t be taken seriously with their off-court demeanor. He specifically cited their postgame interview tradition. The future Hall-of-Famer believes that championship contenders have to carry themselves sharply.

Obviously, that turned out wrong. The Thunder went on to bring home the Larry O’Brien trophy. But hey, that’s part of the gig of being an active voice in the NBA media-sphere while still playing. Sometimes you’re right. Other times you’re wrong.

To prove to Thunder fans that he doesn’t solely hate their squad, Green recently had high praise for Gilgeous-Alexander. He recently appeared on a Twitch stream to praise the MVP winner. He called him his favorite player to watch. He even went out of his way to shush his critics when it came to his free-throw numbers.

“He’s going to get you a bucket. People complaining that he’s drawing fouls but that’s a skill,” Green said. “There’s an art to it. If you’re a dumb defender and you foul, that’s your fault.”

Instead of repeating what social media users constantly say online, Green went with a different approach. If anybody knows what it’s like to play a game within a game, it’s him. He sees that with Gilgeous-Alexander and fully respects the means he’s taken to reach all-time status.

Draymond Green said he favorite player to watch is SGA: “He’s going to get you a bucket. People complaining that he’s drawing fouls but that’s a skill. There’s an art to it. If you’re a dumb defender and you foul, that’s your fault.”
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— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) September 10, 2025