Draymond Green Shares Emotional Reaction to Klay Thompson Leaving Warriors

In a recent guest appearance on the Boardroom with Rich Kleiman, Green opened up about Thompson's decision to leave Golden State and revealed why he did not try to convince his co-star to stay in the Bay Area.

"I knew the pain he was in. That last year he was here, it wasn't Klay. He didn't have his same joy. Everything that made Klay, Klay, he didn't have," Green said. "Sitting back and watching your brother struggle like that — and I don't mean play — I mean struggle with what he feels about himself, what he feels about the situation. To me, that was hard."

Green then talked about his initial reaction when Thompson called him to say he was leaving the Warriors to move to Dallas, and Green's response shows exactly how tight-knit that Warriors core was.

"He was like, 'Man, I just think I need something different, Dray. I've been in California pretty much my whole life. I just want to go try something different.' ...I was just like, 'That's great. I'm so happy for him.' Because I knew he needed that so much for him," Green said. "It was so much bigger than, 'Man, I just want to finish what you guys have finished as a Warriors,' and being a good brother, you've got to see past yourself... The reality is, he needed to go. He needed that to feel like Klay Thompson again."

Despite some on-court struggles, Thompson certainly seems to be in a better place while playing for the Mavericks. Of course, all Warriors fans wanted to see him stay in the Bay Area, but after four championships, he had every right to move on, and it is great to see Green's support.