In December, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green was suspended indefinitely from the NBA after he swung at Phoenix Suns Center Jusuf Nurkic’s head. Green argued that he was trying to draw a foul and accidentally hit Nurkic. Meanwhile, the Suns Center stated that Green “needs help” as his violent actions stem from mental health issues. Five months after the incident, the Bosnian Center has re-iterated that the all-around forward hasn’t fixed his mental health issues yet.
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On ‘Inside the NBA’, the Warriors’ all-around athlete referred to the Suns-Timberwolves tussle in the first round of the 2024 playoffs. He posited that the duo of Rudy Gobert and Karl Anthony-Towns could thrive because the Arizonian franchise “has no big man”.
The 2017 DPOY implied that Nurkic was not a real big man and Kevin Durant filled that position. Since KD and Dray won two championships in 2017 and 2018, Nurkic took a swipe at the Warriors forward for still “crying” about 2x Finals MVP, who left the Warriors in the 2019 offseason. He also re-iterated the 4x All-Star needing intervention from mental health experts.
I see that brother still needs help.
STILL 😢 ABOUT KD, he don’t like #drayover 🤣 https://t.co/FQVwD3UfXP— Jusuf Nurkić 🇧🇦 (@bosnianbeast27) May 14, 2024
The two Western Conference athletes have been regularly firing shots at each other, passively and directly, after the suspension. They can’t stand each other and let the world know their disgust for each other.
Draymond Green and Jusuf Nurkic can’t stop beefing
Since Green got a lengthy suspension for hitting Nurkic on the head, the two have been at war against each other. The Warriors forward chided Nurkic for suggesting that he needs psychological intervention as his erratic behavior emerges from mental health issues.
The rivalry picked up steam when the oft-suspended athlete returned in February 2024. During a game between the Suns and the Warriors, Green and Nurkic exchanged a lot of gestures and comments, while on the court.
In the post-game conference, after the Suns 119-116 win, Nurk claimed that the Warriors forward “hasn’t learned anything” and will keep resorting to violent means. Reacting to these comments, Green termed the former Trail Blazers Center a “300 pounds softy who can’t finish games”.
Then the two traded fire after their respective teams got eliminated in the postseason. When the Kings ousted the Warriors, on X, Nurkic rolled out the Looney Tunes-based “That’s All Folks” meme. Then Green had the chance to pounce upon the seven-footer when the Timberwolves brutally swept his Suns.
On his podcast, he reminded the Bosnian athlete about his Looney Tunes tweet and asked him to stop taking jabs at others when he is a limited role player. Their new exchange adds another chapter to their perpetual abhorrence towards each other. While a little heat is good for players’ motivation, on the court, Green and Nurkic seemed to have taken their tussle to social media. Only time will tell how this WC rivalry will roll out in the coming season.
