Nurkić criticizes Draymond for using KD to criticize the Suns lineup originally appeared in NBC Sports Bay Area
The back and forth between Draymond Green and Jusuf Nurkić took a step forward this week.
While appearing on TNT’s “Inside the NBA” on Monday, Green threw shade at the Suns center and used his former Warriors teammate Kevin Durant to further reinforce his opinion.
“The Suns don’t have any big men,” Green said while debating Charles Barkley. There are no big men on the Suns! KD is the Suns’ big man.”
Green’s criticism of the Phoenix roster was a clear dig at Nurkić, who is the Suns’ starting center but was recently criticized for his underwhelming performance in their first-round playoff loss — a four-game sweep — to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
And it didn’t take long for Nurkić to clap back on X, the site formerly known as Twitter.
Of course, Nurkić’s words stem from Green’s indefinite suspension for hitting the big man in the face during the Suns-Warriors matchup in December during the 2023-24 NBA season.
“What’s happening to him, I don’t know,” Nurkić told reporters on December 12. “This brother needs help. do with basketball. I’m just trying to play basketball and they’re swinging, I think we saw that a lot. I hope everything he achieved in his life gets better.
It seemed like the two briefly tried to make up afterwards – but that was short-lived.
And the heated exchanges continue, even in each player’s respective offseasons.