Tom Izzo and Draymond Green have continued helping one another in their basketball careers long after Green departed East Lansing for the NBA.
And this week, Green revealed a glimpse into that relationship and how it helped him with his mindset as he advances deep into the NBA playoffs.
Green and the Warriors have a 3-0 lead on the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference finals and can close out the series during Game 4 on Tuesday night.
But the series hasn’t been all smooth sailing. In Game 2 last week, Golden State had to overcome some foul issues in an eventual nine-point win. On his podcast this week, Green was honest about how he handled the situation.
“I spent the entire game pouting, frustrated, arguing with the referees,” Green said.
After watching the game, Izzo texted Green some of his thoughts, which Green read on the podcast:
“Day, shaky but you got the job done. In my humble opinion, you all got caught up in the officiating. You’ve got to realize that you’re the leader and many follow. That being said, you hit a big 3-point shot and a couple of big stops were key. They follow your lead, but you’re still up 2-0. Good luck, brother.”
Green said he was appreciative of the feedback in his response:
“Coach, you’re 1,000 percent right. I let my emotions go overboard and the team did follow. I have to be better. But it sure does feel good to win.”
Green said he appreciated the tone of Izzo’s text, which was nicer than some of the messages the two send to one another
“He said it in a very nice way, which is not normal because usually he’ll just tell me ‘You were terrible,’” Green said.
Green had 10 points, five rebounds and five assists on Sunday in Game 3 to help the Warriors move to within a game of the Finals.