NBA Reporter Who Asked Draymond Green Question About Floods Fired

UPDATE: Wednesday, 8:45 a.m. -- According to CSN's Henry Wofford, the reporter who asked Draymond Green this question was fired just one hour after last weekend's press conference.

*****

Catastrophic flooding paralyzed the city of Houston, Texas, last week, killing eight and causing over $5 billion in damages. The nation as a whole is grieving those lost, as emergency crews and officials still work to temper the damage done and bring to safety those that remain in danger.

So it was a cause for surprise on Sunday when one reporter asked the Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green to compare his team’s postseason wins over the Houston Rockets to the floods the city has faced these past two springs.

We’ll quote the exchange in full, as Green’s answer is as significant as it is sharp. First, the reporter:

Draymond, here’s an interesting question. Last year, you visited us. Game three, no flood, you win. Game four, there was flood, you lose. This year, you visit us, game three, there’s a flood… you lose. Game four, there’s no flood, you win. Does that mean …

Suddenly, Green cut him off:

Brother, you asked me about the flood in practice the other day, and I said I pray for the city of Houston because you don’t want to see anyone go thorough that. I feel like you keep trying to get at, like, us hitting threes or something -- trying to get a controversial statement out of me. But you’re not, because I feel sorry for the people of Houston. People are losing their homes, losing their cars, losing their lives, losing loved ones, and you’re trying to get a controversial statement out of me about the threes we’re hitting? I know what you’re getting at, but you’re not getting that out of me. It sucks. If I was from Houston, I’d do anything I can to help the city out. And I’m sure some of those guys are going to do what they can to help the city out, and you saw the donation the other night. It sucks. Stop trying to do that. That’s not cool, man. You keep asking me the same question about this flood. These people are losing their lives, bruh. Losing their homes -- don’t ask me that no more. Because it ain’t cool and you’re not getting the statement you want out of me. That’s not cool, man, stop doing that.

It should be needless to say that a basketball game ranks pretty damn low on the definitive List of Important Things when it comes to life-or-death situations. Good for Green for recognizing this -- and for not even entertaining a question that belittles the pain suffered by the city and citizens of Houston.