"I'd rather not make the playoffs" - Draymond Green on why losing in the NBA Finals is the 'absolute 'worst'
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With the 2024 NBA Finals approaching its end, only a select few could truly understand the incredible high of lifting that championship trophy after eight grueling months of blood, sweat, and tears. On the flip side, being so close to the ultimate prize, only to have it slip through your fingers at the last second, is a bitter pill to swallow.
Draymond Green is acquainted with both sides of this emotional spectrum, having won four NBA Finals and lost two. The four-time All-Star's agony of losing in the championship round is so profound that he would gladly accept the embrace of not reaching the playoffs altogether.
"I'd rather not be in the playoffs at all. You see... You get about a 17-week summer," Green said on Jimmy Kimmel Live. "(But) if you go to the finals, it's nine… If I get the same nine weeks and I lose, no one remembers a loss."
The hypocrisy of seeing the losing side get better
It's not just the shorter turnaround time that bothers Draymond. He also pointed out that while the losing team is expected to make changes and come back stronger, getting the same treatment as the other 28 teams, the championship-winning side gets to be 'complete idiots' allowed to embrace luxury.
Subtly picking the Boston Celtics as the 2024 NBA Champs, Green emphasized how, even if their preparation for the next season is less than optimal, fans grant them a free pass, acknowledging their hard-fought effort. Meanwhile, the team that loses is held to a contrasting standard—put under greater pressure than anyone and allowed no excuses for not improving.
"You got the championship team… they get to be complete idiots, drink whatever they want, wherever they want, whenever… and you just get a pass. Then they come back not in great shape, and everybody is like, 'They won the championship. They're tired,'" Green added. "Remember I said the same nine weeks as they had."
Losing in the NBA Finals is 'absolute worst' feeling
Concluding the segment, the former DPOY informed Kimmel with a truth bomb that any player who says they're just happy to make the Finals after losing is straight-up lying. Draymond knows this firsthand because after his Warriors lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016, the scrutiny and excessive media pressure completely neglected their 73-9 record in the regular season, with the only narrative about them being to get better.
Having gone through that nightmare situation himself, Green made it crystal clear that losing in the NBA Finals is hands down the 'absolute worst' feeling an NBA player can have.