“People Attacking My Wife”: Draymond Green Speaks on How Public Backlash Adversely Affected His Life

NBA stardom comes with its unique set of challenges, including how it makes one a target for criticism. That’s something Draymond Green knows all too well. While many players face backlash on social media due to poor performances, the Golden State Warriors’ power forward has often drawn negativity because of his frequent on-court antics. But now, he seems to understand the impact his behavior can have on those around him.

The former Defensive Player of the Year has never been afraid to be himself, but his emotional volatility and its effects have exhausted his family. Green admitted that his mother no longer watches his games because of the anxiety they induce. Now, she only checks box scores to keep track of the Warriors’ games.

His mom has even urged her son to give up his basketball career, claiming that Draymond has achieved what he set out to do. But the four-time champion isn’t ready to hang it up quite yet. And 13 years into that career, Green is a lot more concerned about the toll it has taken on his family, especially his wife.

“People attacking my wife because I got into it with somebody on the court. She got to cut her comments off. People telling her, ‘I know you getting beat at home’. All this stuff…,” Green said on The Pivot Podcast.

“And I saw the weight that it was putting on her. I could see it, her carrying it. And she gonna ride, so she riding it. But I’m someone, if I’m in your life, I take on your s**t,” he added.

The four-time champion stressed that he’s always the one who takes on others’ hardships, never the other way around. Green claimed that he’s built for that responsibility and rarely needs the support reciprocated. But the repercussions are now bearing down on his conscience.

“When I realize that, d**n, I’m causing them s**t and I ain’t able to take it on because I caused it, it was crushing me,” Green continued. “Because I don’t put my s**t on nobody. I take my s**t on the chin, and I take your s**t, and your s**t, and your s**t on, too. I’mma be there for you like that.”

Green’s actions have even had consequences for his children. “Because now, you know, my kids going to school, my kids coming home, like, ‘Daddy, they said you did this’, and I’m like, d**n. I [have] worked my whole life so these kids can have the best. So that they don’t have to experience what I experienced,” he added.

“Like, I go to work. I work my a** off so that I can provide something for them that was never provided for me. And I’m affecting them negatively,” Green said regretfully.

“It’s killing me because I am that guy, like I’m the guy to make it better for you … And so going through that with them, and knowing my actions caused it was crushing me,” he confessed.

Green, notably, had a tough upbringing. And that reflects in his personality on the court. But in the end, he simply wants to be a provider for the family, ensuring their well-being.