Danny Green on 2020 title: “We enjoyed the time, but said also was short-lived because the next season circled right around the next six weeks. We won in like mid October and then early December was like, “All right, we got to get back to work because we got to get this thing rolling by Christmas… (…) It was more relief than celebrating it, finally we’re done, we can get out of here. I couldn’t imagine losing and having to go that far, be there for that long. I’d be highly upset. It was more of a relief winning it than it was like a celebration of like, “Oh, we achieved something.” It was like, “Damn, we get to go home finally.”
Source: YouTube
Source: YouTube
More on this storyline
There’s a conversation that Stephen A. Smith started. He’s saying that people don’t want to go to Memphis because it’s dangerous — like it’s a gang-gang over there, right? Danny Green: Yeah, I mean, he’s not far off. I don’t think that’s the reason why, though. I just don’t think it’s a destination city. Nashville is one of the cities that people enjoy. Memphis — it is in Tennessee, so you get a tax cut. Like, it’s good on taxes. But it’s just not a city that’s pretty, I guess. Host: You played there. Do you get that danger vibe? Danny Green: Nah. In certain areas, you’ve got to be careful. But I didn’t think it was the most dangerous. I also played in Philly. Exactly. There are so many cities in America. Like, I think — yeah, if they know you, they respect you. If you know what you’re doing, know where you’re going — obviously don’t do silly things. Don’t go into certain places by yourself at certain times of day or night. But the city usually respects the players. -via YouTube / June 22, 2025
Which isn’t to say Green doesn’t also appreciate Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Canadian who won league MVP this year. “I love the fact that he still, he reminds me of Kobe (Bryant). He still does a lot in the mid-range and a lot of footwork and fundamentals,” Green said. “A lot of people are not happy or disappointed with how many threes are being taken and that we don’t have traditional back-to-the-basket games anymore, post-ups and go with big men, and have mid-range games. And it was kind of being pushed out of the game and becoming obsolete. “So the fact that (Gilgeous-Alexander and others), they mix up their game and they make sure that they continue to not only improve, but show how important it is to be able to score on all levels, to be able to defend and to do all the other little things that matter, outside of shooting the ball from the three-point line.” -via Toronto Sun / June 4, 2025
“It’s great,” Green said of Siakam getting back to the biggest stage six years after Toronto’s win (Green himself went five years between going twice for San Antonio and his return with Toronto, then also made it the next year with the Los Angeles Lakers). “A lot of people were, I wouldn’t say doubting him, but they just were so quote/unquote disappointed that he was not becoming the No. 1 option they expected to be when he went to Indiana (in a trade from the Raptors), and for them all to beat the odds. -via Toronto Sun / June 4, 2025