The Golden State Warriors are looking to build momentum in the next two weeks and gain distance from the Western Conference Play-In Tournament. Four-time NBA champion Draymond Green will look to set the tone defensively, despite inconsistent play over his last ten games.
Green’s consistency is always a topic for discussion, and NBA champion Kendrick Perkins recently questioned Green’s focus. Green had a sharp response to Perkins’ accusations.
Draymond Green Takes a Shot at Kendrick Perkins’ Basketball Skills
Green responded to Perkins on his podcast. He said, “You never had bad games. Perk, we seen you play big fella. We saw you big dog, like you played. You know what I’m saying, like, to go in on a bad night Perk, you played.
“We got the clips. We got clips of your screen setting, we got clips of your jump shot Perk. We got clips of your jump hooks. You played big Perk, you know what I’m saying, so like, careful man. We can start pulling clips now, big Perk.”
Draymond Green responding to Kendrick Perkins comments about him saying Draymond is not focused on basketball
“Yeah, Perk, you never had bad games. Perk, we seen you play big fella. We saw you, big dog. Like, you played. You know what I’m saying? Like to go in on one bad night… pic.twitter.com/GX8P90aC8y
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) February 23, 2026
Perkins questioned Green’s commitment to basketball after he had one of the worst games of his career in the Warriors’ recent 121-110 home loss to the Boston Celtics. Green went scoreless after missing all seven attempts from the field. Most disappointing was Green’s inability to impact the game in other ways, as he had just two rebounds and three assists. As a result, he finished the game with a -28 plus/minus rating.
With franchise player Stephen Curry still unavailable due to knee pain and Jimmy Butler III out for the season, the Warriors need Green to step up. Green is averaging 8.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game this season, while shooting 40.9% from the field.
More alarming is that Green isn’t making quite the same impact defensively. He’s averaging less than a steal per game for the first time since his rookie season and is also less of a threat as a rim protector. Green turns 36 soon, so perhaps this is just natural declining, but the Warriors need him to contribute.
Green isn’t the first player to take aim at Perkins’ resume. The latter’s former friend and teammate, Kevin Durant, also called out his performances while they were teammates on the Oklahoma City Thunder. A first-round pick in 2003, Perkins won an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics while providing strong interior defense and toughness.
His best season occurred in 2009-10, when he averaged 10.1 points per game and shot 60.2% from the field. However, as Green points out, and Durant before him, Perkins had an extremely limited offensive game. He only averaged a handful of shot attempts per game in his career and didn’t make a three. Perkins often ended up on blooper reels when he tried to expand his game.
Regardless of whether Green respects Perkins’ credibility, the Warriors need him to finish the regular season on a high note.