Draymond Green voiced his opinion on Victor Wembanyama’s sudden jump in the MVP rankings after weeks of his trailing behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic.
In the NBA’s latest MVP rankings, which went live on Friday, Wembanyama took the No. 1 spot with SGA in second and Jokic in third. The sudden jump drew reactions around the league, but Green says he saw it coming.
Green was also subjected to criticism this past week after agreeing with Wembanyama’s take on the MVP race.
“I hated it, and I absolutely loved it,” Green said on Wednesday, speaking about Wembanyama’s comments on the MVP race. “And the reason I hated it is because until Wemby said ‘Defense is 50 percent of the game,’ it was like, oh man, no one realized that. Like no one realized that 50 percent of the game we play is on that end of the floor.”
“So he comes out and makes this profound a** statement and it’s like, ‘Oh, of course it is.’ And everybody’s like, ‘Oh man, he has a great point.’ Hello! You think?”
After Wembanyama jumped up in the MVP rankings, Green responded to his critics with an Instagram post on Friday.
“Speak on it. Stand on it!” Green wrote. “For the people who told me I sounded crazy two nights ago about speaking on the topic! Did Wemby’s gameplay change in the last two days? Or did he just speak on the subject and opened the basketball geniuses eyes?”
Green took a similar approach during the 2024-25 season. The forward publicly advocated for himself to win the Defensive Player of the Year award. His standing increased, with Green finishing third in voting behind Evan Mobley and runner-up Dyson Daniels.
Stephen A. Smith calls out Draymond Green for not advocating for Victor Wembanyama’s MVP case
In his comments from Wednesday, Green criticized the media for not considering Wembanyama as an MVP favorite, citing the lack of importance received by the defensive end. Stephen A. Smith replied to Green’s comments, criticizing him for not speaking up sooner.
“You know who else hasn’t talked about it, Draymond? You,” Smith said. “You’ve had your podcast for years. We don’t hear you talking about that that much because we’re listening to what you’re saying. We didn’t hear you talking about that before. So if you missed it, what you knocking us for missing it for? You do it for a living, and you didn’t talk about it that much.”
Green has yet to publicly acknowledge Smith’s comments on the subject.
Read More: Draymond Green Tips His Hat to Victor Wembanyama’s Fearless MVP Push in “Love-Hate” Admission
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