Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green took time during his postgame press conference on Monday night to criticize the NBA and its teams over how players who are on the trading block are treated.
Green first commented on Cleveland Cavaliers big man Andre Drummond. Drummond was recently told by his team that he’ll no longer be playing as the team looks to trade him somewhere else.
“I would like to talk about something that’s really bothering me. It’s the treatment of players in this league. To watch Andre Drummond … come out in street clothes because a team is going to trade him, it’s bullshit.”
Green related this to the Houston Rockets recently trading former league MVP James Harden.
“Because when James Harden asked for a trade and essentially dogged it — I don’t think no one’s gonna fight that James was dogging it his last days in Houston — but he was castrated for wanting to go to a different team, and everybody destroyed that man.”
“Yet a team can come out and say, ’Oh, we want to trade a guy,’ and then that guy is to go sit and if he doesn’t stay professional, then he’s a cancer and he’s not good in someone’s locker room and he’s the issue,” Green continued.
Green emphasized the double standard between how players and management are treated when it comes to trades.
“As a player, you’re the worst person in the world when you want a different situation. But a team can say they’re trading you, and that man is to stay in shape, he is to stay professional, and if not his career is on the line. At some point, this league has to protect the players from embarrassment like that.”
The double standard between employees and management that Green is highlighting is not something that’s new in the workforce. In many industries, management can lay off workers or cut employee salaries if it benefits the business, leaving workers oftentimes with less power.
While it may seem odd to view NBA players as normal workers, they are subject to many of the same struggles that typical laborers suffer from.
