'You walk with nothing' – Golden State Warriors veteran Draymond Green says reaching NBA Finals is overrated if it ends in heartbreak, citing New York Knicks' loss

Time of India

3 days ago

Draymond Green. Image via: Godofredo A. Vásquez/ AP
Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green is no stranger to the NBA Finals spotlight, but he recently shared an eye-opening perspective that challenges the league's glorification of second place.
Speaking on The Draymond Green Show alongside former All-Star Baron Davis, Green used the New York Knicks' recent playoff run to show a larger point. He asserted that reaching the Finals without winning is not an accomplishment but a bitter reminder of what could've been. For him, falling short on the biggest stage is more deflating than missing the playoffs altogether.
Draymond Green argues that emotional devastation outweighs perceived progress in the playoffs
Draymond Green. Image via: Christian Petersen/ Getty Images
Draymond Green and his team Golden State Warriors, were long gone from the playoffs but the veteran has something to say on the emotional weight of losing in the conference finals.
'If you want me to be quite honest with you, I personally think making it to the NBA Finals is one of the worst seasons you can have,' Green admitted on the podcast, referencing the New York Knicks as a prime example.
'Going to the NBA Finals and winning an NBA championship, those two things are so far apart. You can get to the NBA Finals and not be close to winning an NBA championship.'
For Green, who has won four championships and lost in the Finals, the emotional toll of coming up short overshadows the progress teams believe they've made.
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"Even if the Knicks made it to the NBA Finals and didn't win it, that's not some accomplishment to me," he said. "You get nothing for making the NBA Finals except a couple tens of thousands of dollars more than the conference final loser and you get another three weeks short of summer.
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He likened the aftermath of a Finals loss to a fog of uncertainty that teams must stumble through. 'You walk with nothing,' he shared. 'The [other] team goes on and celebrates and has this incredible summer and you're kind of left stuck trying to figure out 'Were we really close? Do we need to run it back with this team? What's the tweak we need to make?'"
That confusion, Green warned, can be dangerous.
'You're kind of left in this position of 'Ahh, maybe we're one tweak away.' But what you should understand about this thing is one tweak could actually, it's like Jenga sometimes—one tweak on a roster could make the whole thing fall.'
Referencing the Knicks again, he floated whether a major change like firing head coach Tom Thibodeau could be one of those destructive tweaks. According to Green, reaching the Finals without winning can create a false sense of being 'almost there,' which often backfires. 'Making it to a conference finals, you're so far away from winning a championship, and it looks like it's close because you're one series away,' he explained.
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Ultimately, Green's closing thought was as blunt as it was profound, 'Yeah, making it to the Finals is great, but if you don't win it, it's almost worse. You might as well have lost in the first round.'