One year ago today, the Golden State Warriors season blew up before it even began. Golden State was prepared to begin its title defense in training camp, but things went awry thanks to a comment by Jordan Poole, who had received a contract extension.
Draymond Green, who has since apologized for his actions, punched Poole in practice. The video was released by TMZ and prompted all sorts of social media reaction. Green initially recorded a podcast to address the situation, but it was never made public.
Pablo Torre investigated this situation further on his podcast, Pablo Torre Finds Out. The podcast included Oscar-winning filmmaker Ezra Edelman, who is a Warriors fan and has several sources with the Warriors in the bay area. Edelman received an umprompted text message while out to dinner with Torre, who looked into the matter.
Torre received confirmation of some sort that Poole told Green "You're an expensive backpack for 30." That, per Torre's sourcing, led to Green's reaction.
Warriors: What did Jordan Poole say to Draymond Green?
Poole's insult has to be dissected to truly understand the meaning behind it. At the time, Green was in search of a new contract, so that was a fairly emotional talking point. Poole had received his extension, hence the drama behind his line.
By saying "expensive backpack for 30", Poole was insinuating that Green received the majority of his income by playing with Steph Curry, and playing a supporting role. Green is obviously one of the better defensive players in basketball, as well as an elite passer, but doesn't put up the numbers that a Curry or Klay Thompson do on a regular basis. It was unclear if he would receive his deserved extension as a result of this, or if the Dubs thought they could get along without him.
Since then, Poole has been traded to the Washington Wizards, while Green received a four-year, $100 million extension. Golden State made their choice, and frankly the locker room division made it even easier.
