A member of the New York Knicks believes Draymond Green should refrain from weighing in on the franchise’s business.
Green’s discussion on his podcast about the team drew attention from a Knicks guard on Tuesday night via X.
The Knicks star felt compelled to respond, questioning Green’s choice to comment on the situation since both are “grown men.”
Knicks veteran Josh Hart accused Green of implying that Hart should have reduced his own pay rather than Jalen Brunson, the Knicks’ Finals MVP.
“We have to normalize grown men not counting other people’s pockets,” Hart wrote on X.
Fans were stunned to learn LeBron James is now teammates with a player who had previously talked trash about his son Bronny.
Green’s remarks were actually delivered on the “520 Podcast,” launched by former NBA player Jeff Teague, around July 2024, roughly when Brunson’s contract extension with the Knicks was announced.
“It’s the New York Knicks, man. They can afford it,” Green said. “You don’t need to take a discount for them to get paid. My situation with the Warriors was different because Steph Curry was earning $270 million, and Klay Thompson was at $180 million.”
“All right, something’s got to give. Fine. I can take a smaller amount.”
“(Brunson is) the top guy,” Green continued. “Let Josh Hart or someone else take less. They’re in my role.”
“Guess what? Steph Curry didn’t take a penny less. And neither did Klay Thompson. I don’t know what Brunson is doing. That’s a $100 million deal.”
Back in the summer of 2024, Brunson opted to grant the Knicks more salary-cap flexibility by signing a four-year, $156.5 million extension, a figure roughly $113 million below what a five-year deal could have been the following year.
Green’s perspective on the issue drew renewed attention from Hart after another X user reposted it on July 27.
Fast forward to 2026, and Brunson’s gamble paid off when the Knicks ended a 53-year drought by defeating the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals in June.
“I knew that if I did this, eventually it would come back to benefit me,” Brunson said during a June interview on The View after New York clinched the title. “Some positive outcome would follow from it.”
Hart currently has two seasons left on an $80.9 million deal he signed with the Knicks in 2023, while Brunson is eligible for another extension next summer that could approach well above $300 million.
Before Hart called Green out on Tuesday night, reports surfaced that Green had agreed to a one-year, $27.7 million contract to return to the Warriors.
Green had opted out of a contract that would have paid him the same amount earlier in the summer so the Warriors could pursue LeBron James in free agency.
However, James chose to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers last Friday on a two-year deal that will pay him only $4 million per season.
That arrangement is a major steal for the 76ers, and it’s fair to say Green did not appreciate James’s decision to take a pay cut either.
