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Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green has publicly apologised for his physical altercation with teammate Jordan Poole. The incident took place on Wednesday when Green had reportedly punched Poole. But on Friday, the video was leaked on the internet via TMZ.
The former Defensive Player of the Year also confirmed that he will be taking a few days away to work through some things and give his teammates and Poole the necessary space they need. Further in his address, Green expressed that the incident was a huge embarrassment for him, Poole, his family and the team.
"I'm going to continue to stay away, as I've been away, and continue to do work on myself, but also just give guys space," Green said in a news conference on Saturday.
"I do want to give my team some space, I want to give Jordan some space, and then also take a few days and continue to work on myself ... take some time to let everything breathe," he added.
“There’s a huge embarrassment that comes with (it),” Green stated.
“Not only for myself, as I was the one who committed the action ... but the embarrassment that Jordan has to deal with and that this team has to deal with, this organization has to deal with. But also Jordan’s family. His family saw that video. His mother, his father saw that video. If my mother saw that video, I know how my mother would feel.”
Draymond also expressed that he has failed the team as a leader and the incident has put him in a dark mental space. "That day that took place I was in a very, very bad space mentally," Green said. Frankly, I didn't handle that well and I failed as a leader. I failed as a man, and I failed as a leader."
The Golden State Warriors have not announced an official punishment for Green, as they had hoped to handle the issue internally prior to the video of the altercation being leaked on Friday morning. Warriors coach Steve Kerr mentioned that the decision for Green to step away was agreed upon together.
Although Green hasn't decided how long he will be away from the team. He plans to be available on opening night on 18 October against the Los Angeles Lakers. An official decision by the team has not been made, but Myers expressed that he didn't expect Green to miss any games.