The Golden State Warriors have been the NBA team of the past decade. They’ve won four titles since 2015, they have the most beloved player in the game in Steph Curry, with the exception of Draymond Green and his frequent antics, they seem to be a likable bunch with a high Q rating, even among fans of most other teams.
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Even the most popular teams have their detractors, and the Warriors certainly have one in comedian Andrew Schulz. On the latest episode of his Flagrant podcast, Schulz, who is known for being brash and politically incorrect, took a blowtorch to the Warriors’ squeaky-clean image.
Schulz had a lot to say about the way the Warriors handled Kevin Durant’s injury in the 2019 playoffs, and his cohosts let him cook as he went on an epic rant.
“The Warriors are scum,” Schulz said. “The Warrior organization and that crocodile-tear, fake, phony, Oscar-worthy, bulls*** performance that Bob Myers put on in that press conference, where he fake cried talking about, ‘Oh it’s an Achilles injury.’ Motherf*****, you knew it was an Achilles injury.”
“Why do you think that there was ice on his Achilles for the last two weeks? Why do you think that every one of the reports that you got from the team doctors said that there was an issue with his Achilles,” Schulz asked.
He didn’t stop there, as he went on to say that the Warriors pressured Durant to return to the court both internally and through the media by leaking reports that called his toughness into question. He then compared Durant’s situation to Klay Thompson’s to explain why the team treated the two players so differently.
Schulz continued, “The reason why they’re pressuring him to come back, is because they know he’s gone,” Schulz explained. “So if something does happen to him … you know he’s off the books at the end of the year, and you know he’s not re-signing. Now you know Klay, he’s got a little hammy injury, you know he’s re-signing, so what do you say to Klay?”
“You say, ‘Please, don’t play Game 3, you could possibly hurt yourself. I know you’re coming back to my team and I gotta protect your body, but this guy over here that I know is leaving? I don’t care if his s*** busts.”
Nothing was off limits for Schulz, as he also attacked Steve Kerr, calling him a “ruthless piece of s***” for his role in the pressure campaign to bring KD back.
There’s so much to unpack here. Schulz obviously feels strongly about this, but he also has a few biases that need to be pointed out. Still, he might have a point, with the best piece of circumstantial evidence being the fact that Durant nixed a possible deadline deal this past year that would have sent him back to Golden State.
As a diehard Knicks fan, Schulz may still have an ax to grind with the Warriors for taking Steph Curry one pick before the Knicks could. Yes it was a while ago, but Spike Lee brought it up just last week on The Old Man and the Three, so we know it’s still on Knicks fans’ minds. Schulz may also still have ill will towards Steve Kerr for being part of those Michael Jordan-era Bulls teams that used to own the Knicks.
One bit working in Schulz’s favor is that he’s sticking up for Durant, despite KD turning the Knicks down when they pursued him as a free agent way back when, signing with their crosstown rival Brooklyn Nets instead. Many Knicks fans still hold a grudge over that, but Schulz taking up on his behalf points to this being an honest take.
At the time, it definitely seemed like a bad idea for Durant to come back that season, but with a championship on the line, he decided to give it a go, not unlike the way Tyrese Haliburton tried to play through a calf strain of his own and tore his Achilles in Game 7 of this past season’s Finals.
Durant was the one that made the final call, but that doesn’t absolve the Warriors if they pressured him to come back. Thankfully, the injury didn’t ruin his career as he initially feared it would, and he was able to make a full recovery, and he’s still going strong as he’s about to enter his 18th season.
