Recently, Paul Pierce sparked fresh controversy by criticizing Kevin Durant’s decision to join the Golden State Warriors. The Celtics legend argued that Durant should never have signed with the very team that had just eliminated his own, calling the move unworthy of a “true competitor.” Of course, Durant has long been a target of criticism for his high-profile exit from the Oklahoma City Thunder, especially after OKC blew a 3–1 lead to the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals—a loss followed by Durant reportedly being intrigued by Golden State even during the Finals.
Melbet Affiliates reports that the Warriors didn’t take Pierce’s comments lightly, and Draymond Green was the first to hit back. Green blasted the Hall-of-Famer’s old-school mentality and dismissed his remarks as outdated and irrelevant. “I just want to know when they’ll finally shut up,” Green said. “Like Pierce—bro, no one cares what you’re doing or who you did it for. Everyone wants to twist everything KD says. He plays for the Warriors now. The Thunder are the Thunder. The Warriors are the Warriors. He left—that’s it.”
Green then delivered a sharp analogy to defend Durant’s move: “Why is it nobody trashes the Apple exec who jumps ship to Google? Aren’t they competitors too? Nobody bats an eye when tech executives switch sides. It’s just business. KD’s a businessman—he’s his own CEO. He just switched companies, simple as that.”
Taking it a step further, Green criticized the mindset of some former players. “There’s always these idiots in the league who think this is wrong,” he said. “They just don’t have business sense. This happens in every other industry, but in basketball, it’s a sin? C’mon. Basketball is a job too. Who doesn’t want better conditions, better opportunities for themselves and their family? Nobody calls out people in tech, but when it’s an athlete, suddenly it’s betrayal.”
As for Durant himself, Green noted that the star remains unbothered. “He’s still KD. He doesn’t lose sleep over this stuff. Sometimes he just laughs it off. It’s ridiculous. These guys have their own kids but feel the need to micromanage how grown men live their lives? Please.”
Melbet Affiliates concludes that in an era where player empowerment is reshaping the league, Green’s words serve as a powerful reminder: in sports, as in business, loyalty is a two-way street—and everyone’s just trying to make the best decision for their future.