The Draymond Green Show - A Tribute To Adreian Payne

fan duel sports book makes it easy. What's up everyone, Welcome back to the Drakemond Green Show. We obviously have a lot to talk about tonight. Um big Celtics Bucks game from earlier today with the Celtics tieing the series up to the two on the road, not going down from three one because unless you are to go to State Warriors, you hold onto that league. And that's the past. By the way, we're up for you one right now. That ain't never happening again. But that is the past.

And you know, you either embrace it or you let it hunt you. I embrace it. It It is what it is, and so as I was saying the Celtics tied the series up, so we will be talking a little bit about that game, as I have not had an opportunity to see that entire game because obviously we were preparing

to play for tonight. UM. But before that, uh, what I would love to take a moment, maybe a little longer than a moment, and talk about a brother of mine, UM, my college teammate, my college roommate for two and a half years, UM, Adrian Pain. Uh, dear dear friend. UM. We we suffered a tragic loss um early this morning, and I woke up today to my mom crying, UM calling me. My mom never calls me that early, so

it's a little weird. UM. I never really heard the phone when I'm sleep, so it's also a little weird that I actually heard the phone vibrating UM, and I saw it was my mom. So I picked up and I had about an hour left of sleep time before my alarm went off and shoot around and I received the news that Adrian had been shot and killed. For anyone that the new Adrian you know or you knew Adrian was harmless. He was an incredible person. He cared

about people more than he cared about himself. Um I mean and when I say harmless, he lost his life one to help someone. Uh, Adrian arrived to help a friend in a domestic that was dealing with the domestic dispute are and when Asian Adrian arrives to help, he was tragically shot. And the big brother in me want would love to call Adrian right now and curse him out and say, hey, man, like you know, I know you want to help, but maybe send someone to help. Maybe call the cops to help, um as that is

their duty as they are trained for that. And I wish for thinking I would love to call and say that to him. Unfortunately, UM, I will never have that opportunity. Adrian. Adrian was such a joy to be around, always great energy, um, funny, hilarious. We all call him big Players. Every time you see some see us or see someone, what's up player? Player,

what's up? Player? Called everybody these my little players, and we all call him big player and Adrian to give you a little backstory or Adrian, you know, I talked to coach DJ this morning, Coach Dwayne Stephens, and he was kind of telling me exactly what happened. And the first thing I said to him, is who's gonna play his funeral? Adrian lost his mom at thirteen years old. She died in his arms. He couldn't find her in Helen and at thirteen years old she passed away right

in his arms. Imagine living with the weight on your heart, the burden, the thought, Uh, if only I could have found that in Haler, I could have saved her life. Is that true? We don't know, We'll never know. But what is true is I know Asirian lived with that burden for the rest of his life, which was tragically cut short eighteen years later at the age of thirty one. Adrian was then went on to be raised by his grandmother, who passed away going into my senior year college, which

will be going into Adrian's sophomore year of college. And so I asked the question, who's going to plan his funeral? Because that is a legit worry, that is a legit concern. Adrian has a son that is three or four years

old named Amori. Adrian recently just had another kid, and from my understanding, we actually what I do know for certain is that Adrian was an incredible father and sunned recently within the last eight or nine months had brain surgery, and ap was right by his side the moment he could be it's his song, who he loved dearly, who looks just like him, now has to grow up without

a fuck. Preparing myself to play for a game today was one of the hardest things I've had to do it and that I can think of in my recent memory. Ultimately I found it within two Try to bring some energy to the game, try to help my team win, because unfortunately, in the world that we live in, life just continues to go on. And I had a moment in my seat, um at my locker this morning and

Coach Kurr said to me, you can go home. Nobody's expecting you to be here, and it's like, no, coach, I have, I got a game prepared for And that's just the reality. Like life just continues to go on. Unfortunately, life has to continue to go on without a p M. For his children, for his father, for his brothers, for his blood brothers, for spartan brothers, for a spartan family.

It has to continue to go on without him. And my hope and my prayer is that his son ultimately knows how much she loved him, how much she cared for him, how he would have given anything for his children. Um absolutely loved children. There was a national story some years at when Adrian was still at Mission State about a little girl named Lacey that had a terminal disease. I remember the first day. I was still on the team. The first day we went to the children's hospital and

AP met Lacey. We were kind of going from room to room and AP state in the one room where the whole time. And he left at the hospital that day with a new friend, with a new sister, with someone that he would spend countless enough, whether the hours with for the rest of her short life. He had her games, he went to birthday parties, He did whatever he could to show her that she had a friend

in him. That's who Adrian Pain was. So when I say I would love to call and curse him out, the reality is is it makes total sense that he lost his life going to help someone else, because that's that's exactly how a p would have it. If you told AP you're gonna die, here are the ways in which you would die, And if that was one of the options, that would be the one he would pick, because that who Adrian pain Was. I can go on and on and on about stories I have, what's him about? Memories?

I could sit here and talk for hours about him, spent a ton of time together. As I announced in my press conference tonight, Hazel and myself will donate one hundred thousand dollars and and and it's just so fresh like I don't know exactly, but this is what it looks like. I don't know exactly what it's gonna be.

But as I said in my press conference or earlier after the game, I am calling on my Spartan family to step up an AP s honor coaches, Oh that Ishpa, Magic JOHNSONID, Gary Harris, Valentine, Xavier Tilman, Jaren Jackson, Third bringing Forbes and all of those that I left off. Um, and this is not just Spartan basketball family, UM, everyone who AP touched in the Spartan family. UM. Maybe it

will consist of a couple of different things. Maybe we'll start to go fund me or something too for Adrian's children. But what I want to do is where my hundred tho dollars will go Mine and Hazel is. I hope to start something for those that don't know how to reach this side. There will be go fund me for

you if you want to contribute for adrianus kids. But what I wanna do is and those that I called on, is I want to put something together and we I have the honor of having when you walk in to Michigan State's Jim Practice Jim Auxiliary, Jill, I have the honor of having a huge weight room around the side of the court and Draymond Agreen strength and conditional facility.

It came with my donation to the school. And what I want to do is with the guys that I've caught up on, I want to put something together in

honor of Adrian. So when his son, who we will always have back at Michigan State, because this is a family, when his son walking that Jim and walk on that campus, I'm not sure what it be it that he sees something named after Adrian Pain with a big, huge picture of Adrian Pain in Michigan State green and white, and he can look up and say that's my dad, and a's he grow older and as all of his children grow older, I keep saying he because that's the one

I've had the opportunity to meet. The mark as they grow older, they can walk in there and they can be proud and know that their dad left a legacy and he would never be forgotten. It brings me great joy when I take my family back and they see my picture on the wall, and they see the acculates and they see the Draymond Green strength and condition, so

that it brings me great joy. And I hope, my hope and prayer is that forever, when we get this done, that his children will walk in and that will bring them great joy. So as I said, I can go on and on, but that is my hope, that is my prayer, that is my call to action, if you will, my fellow Spartan family, life. Life is short. Enjoy those that you love, Embrace them, get magg and over it.

Life is too short. I urge those who are in domestic violent situations to get help because a lot of times they end with someone that's in a dispute life being taken. This time it ended with someone that's trying to help, life being taken. And unfortunately those situations they end like that all too often. And so I urge anyone who's in a domestic relationship, um who's dealt with

it to get help, UM, to call on help. If you know your friend is in the domestic relationship and they don't have it within themselves to get help because they think it's going to get better, I urge you to reach out to someone and get them help. If your friend is in a domestic relationship, I urge you to call the cops, to send them and not take it up on ourselves, because the reality is we can

take it upon ourselves. And Adrian could have ended up protecting himself if if he was armed, or and then he's in a situation that he shouldn't have been in and losing his life a different way. And so I urge those that have any knowledge of any domestic situation to encourage your friends, family, whoever it may be, to get help. And if you see that they're not willing to get help, you try to help them, you know, because we see far too many lives taken away involving

a domestic dispute. So that is my call to everyone who here's this, UM. I asked for those that do here this to share this with those that don't, because we see it far too often. Rest in peace, Adrian, I love you brother. You were incredible. Beat the odds. Beat the odds, my man. You made it out of day, know how, when they said you wouldn't make it past elementary school, because if you're learning disability, not only did you make it past elementary, not only did you make

it past middle school. Not only did you make it past high school. Not only did you make it to college, you graduated from college when they said you couldn't, when they said you never played basketball at a high level because you couldn't run and shoot the ball at the same time. You couldn't run and chew gum at the same time. When you first started, you beat the hats and you made it to the NBA. That's what we all dream about when we play this game. You actually

did it. To my brother, I love you until we meet again. You got my word. I will always look out after your loved ones, your children, and help in any way I can. I love you, my brother. Now moving forward to the Warriors Grizzly game, as I had to do with my day, I would now move forward in the podcasts. For those of you who always know my energy on the podcast, I truly apologize that I just don't have that today. But I will give you

what I have and Warriors Grizzlies, no job. Um. That is a team that was twenty and five in the regular season without Jack. They showed that tonight. We we got away with one that we probably shouldn't have won. But we are battle tested. We are we do have championship pedigree, and we not we understand that. Hey we started the game, oh for sixteen over fifteen from three and couldn't buy a basket. I mean the score was

forty one to thirty eight at halftime. Allah. The two thousand four Detroit Pistons beat him to Los Angeles Lakers and finals very very very low scoring game, which none of us are used to in today's NBA. But no Jaw inserts Steven Adams into the lineup. I was a little shock that they decided to go to Steven Adams,

in large part due to he hadn't played. I think he played the first game and maybe the first few minutes of the second game in their first round series which went six games, and hadn't really played since until the garbage time minutes and in our last game, which was a blowout, And so I was really shocked that they inserted him into the star lineup and true Steven Adams fashion professional as he is and has always been.

He comes out and he has a very good game, rebounded the ball really well, scored the ball when he had opportunities, bought a physical presence for them, Uh that we hadn't really seen because Stephen just brings a different type of dominance to a basketball game. And so I thought that was uh, that was a inserted Steven Adams.

It turned out to be a positive for them. I thought there were ways that we could have taken advantage of Steven Adams being in the lineup with just our style of playing the lineups that we were playing, but we just didn't have it going offensively. We didn't have a rhythm, a lot of turnovers in the first half, again, which has kind of been a story in this series. Um. The last game, we scored a hundred and forty two points. I think we had sixteen and seventeen turnovers, but fourteen

of those came in the first half. We were leading by seven after Game three. Uh, at halftime Game three, I'm sorry, and we came out that third quarter and we have one of those warriors the third quarters that a lot of people that watched Warriors basketball over the last seven years or so has gotten a custom to and we were able to blow the game open and hold on to that lead, not only hold onto it, but push it up. And you know, one of the one thing that I thought was beautiful in that game

three was we were up twenty points John Morett. I know what the conversation was when they held it up. We've been here before, we know what it takes. Let's go out here and let's get back in this game and win the game. And John Morett came out playing like that. They were up twenty points. John started to go on his rampage and scoring every place, and I think he looked up like, wow, I'm starting to go crazy.

He had a couple of those Job layups that only Job makes, and he looked up and they were down twenty five. And that was big for us because that was to show them this isn't the Minnesota Timber You're not You're no longer playing that team. This is the Golden State Warriors. This is championship level basketball, this is how we do it. And it was it was beautiful to seat. We went on to score one hundred forty two points and win the game, far cry from the

one hundred and one point that we scored tonight. But it's funny because I told Geordan Pool. Jordan Pool asked me right after that game. He said, no, they're gonna quit naha. I said, no, no, it's zero to zero in game four start on Monday. He said, okay, all right, I got you, And sure enough, that's exactly what happened. Um, I want to send my well wishes the John Marette. Um, you know, you never want to see a guy get hurt.

I totally disagree with the whole notion of Jordan hurt his knee, as I saw several different players even on the field him grabbing at his knee long before that play. I also saw on that play him in Jordan's bump knees. But in saying that, like I said in my press conference that day, I'm not gonna go tiffort tad on what happened and whatnot. I wish him well. I wish

him a speedy recovery. Uh. You never want to see anyone get hurt, especially a young superstar talent like that, and so most importantly, I just want to wish John speedy recovery. Let's talk a little bit about Game four, and I probably again I apologize for my lack of energy. It's been a very emotionally taxing day with me. Jaren Jackson was having an absolutely incredible game. We couldn't get a stop. Otto couldn't get a stop. Play couldn't get

a stop. I couldn't get a stop. None of us could get a stop on Jaren Jackson in the second half. Down the stretch, they went to him. He drove left across the middle of the pain. He misses, Steph Curry gets rebound back. Two three throws down, we go up, We get another stop. They go back to Jared for the three. I get a block. And for the lip readers out there, I simply said, don't don't do that for game. Don't he's having a great game, but don't

go at me for game. I don't like that. It's disrespectful, you know. And the reality is somebody go at you a game sometimes when they go the opposite way and take it all the way back to Andre Miller game and me in the playoffs our rookie year. But I don't like that. Don't go at me for game. And they did and I understand Jared had it gone no job, Dylan Brooks was having a pretty rough night. They go to their guy. I totally get it. Incredible, incredible performance

by jan He's been incredible our series. Actually, Um, but I I had to do what I'm paid to do, and that's come up with big time stops and big time moments and shout out to our guard, Steph play wigs Um Jordan's Damian Lee. Everybody who stepped on the floor has been rebounding the basketball and that's been critical, especially with the lineups that we played. Auto doing incredible

job rebounding. Looney comes in doing incredible job rebound and that's a huge key to us being ahead three one in this series, because, as I said at the beginning of the series, the game starts for them on a miss shot by them or US offensive rebounds. They led the league in offensive rebounding, They play big, they crashed the glass. So rebounding has been huge for us in this series, and it's a large part due and it's a large part of the reason we're up three to one.

I'm not exactly certain, but I think we've outrebounded them in all four games, and that is huge because that's supposed to be our weakness, that's supposed to be how they're supposed to take advantage of our small lineups. And for us to rebound that way, you have to give a lot of credit to all the guys on the floor taking on that challenge boxing out. A huge part of that is keeping your man in front of you

so you are in rebound the position. And so that's been a huge key in this series and it's been absolutely great Steph Curry. With all the slander, all of this, all of that, Steph Curry showed you, once again for those that I love to talk and blah blah blah, fore headlines why he's Steph Curry. Where he took over that fourth quarter, in particular, the last six minutes of that fourth quarter showed you why he's Steph Curry. Showed you why he's the only unanimous m VP in m

v in NBA history. He showed you why he's a three time champion. He showed you why the baby face Assassin became Steph Curry as you know him today. Huge, huge, huge effort by Steph on the offensive end, especially on a pretty horrendous offensive night for US but you put the ball in your guy hands that's gonna make the place for you, and you trust him to make the plays. Mike Brown did that, he didn't go away from that, and eventually Steph did what step does. He took over

the game down the stretch. He got us every big bucket that we needed and we were able to pull out that game. Also, a huge, huge thing that step has been doing this series is taking des McBain out. Desmond Bain is a huge key to their offense, and Steph has done an incredible job of taking him out of the series. We have one more win to get. It's not over. But Steph's focus on the defensive end for a nondefender, I mean he has been so locked in, Like even when he leaves the floor, he he go,

he points to, he calls whoever on our team. He then wants to carry bank play. You go there, And that's his trusting Clay, you know it's it's we've been together now, those two for eleven years. Myself Ton that's his trusting Clay, Like, no, I'm not trusting anyone else. I'm gonna trust Clay. You go, you go guard. And that's been huge and it's been beautiful to see for me on how he's taken on that challenge and and

and made it tough for Bang to get loose. Uh, which is another huge reason we're sitting here up three to one, headed back to Memphis tomorrow to try to close out this series on Wednesday. That's been absolutely incredibly important and I hope that he will get the credit for that. I hope that people can look past you know, of course, what everyone's gonna talk about old Steph gotta go on offensively, but no one's going to talk about his defensive effort and taking Desmond Bang out of the series.

And that's been huge. So shout out to staff. We needed for one more night, my brother, we needed for one more night close this thing out, get back to the conference finals. Has been a long, long year, an event for one. Um. Congratulations to Mike Brown on getting the head coach of of the Sacramento Kings. I think the Sacramento Kings is on the seventeen year playoff dropped,

sixteen seventeen year playoff dropped. I have no doubt in my mind that Mike is going to take his ch championship pedigree, his incredible especially defensive minded, incredible basketball mind with an incredible staff to Sacramento with him, and I think it won't be long before that Threek is broken and I'm looking forward to Mike. Mike is what now thirteen and old in the playoffs as the Doves head

coach record stays unblemished. Also send um love well wishes and the speedy recovery to coach Kerr, to Rixellbrini to Carl Bergstrom and recovering from COVID. Uh just another one of the things that we're hit with. So on top of me dealing with what I've been dealing with, an emotion that I've been dealing with today in the Los vengean, we then walk into the arena to only find out that our head coach just as the positive for COVID right before the game. And so it's been a very

eventful emotional day nonetheless, but the Doves sported out. The Doves are up three to one, headed back to Memphis, and you don't squander opportunity, you take advantage of opportunity. So we are going to give all that we have to close this thing out in five and I believe in my heart if we go in locked in play Warriors basketball from the beginning. That will do that. That's the plan onto the Celtics Buck series, which is tied to the two. Uh. The Celtics took that when in

Milwaukee today won sixteen and one oh eight. Y'all see Jackson. Y'all probably don't see Jackson, but Jackson's doing his little dance as you know for our listeners who we love, we appreciate. You know, Jackson is a big time Celtics fan, and so he's excited behind thirty points from both Al Horford and Jayson Tatum. J T, I love you my brother as my little brother. As y'all know, we've built a relationship. But I don't want to talk about you and j T. You're supposed to get third. Ah. I

don't know if it's a Boston thing. If like Al just bleeds green, Al may bleed green, because what y'all don't know is Alice from Grand Ledge, which is right next to East Lasting. Al probably should have been a Michigan State Spartan as opposed to a Florida Gator. So I'm going to go out on the limit and say Al does bleed greed, and that is why he thrived in the Celtics Green. Al Horford is playing incredible basketball. He's knocking down the shot, He's doing a great job

on Jannice. He is a their veteran leader. As you can see how everyone responds to anything that he says. His presence, I mean, Al has been absolutely incredible. I'm not sure what Alice contract situation is, but Al looking like he got another four or five years a bump

left in those legs, and it's it's been incredible to watch. Um. What Al has done for that series is what what you can see and watching this game and jt ended up with thirty tonight, but what you can see is Milwaukee is saying Jaylen Brown won't beat us and Jayson Tatum won't beat us, and Al Horford said, Okay, well I will. And it's been absolutely beautiful to watch two.

For Al Horford to be sent to Oklahoma City a lot like Chris paul Um, a lot like Chris paul to essentially die on his lay on his deathbed, and that's no disrespect to Oklahoma City Thunder as an organization, but where they are and they're rebuild, you take on a contract that's considered a bad contract. That guy is pretty much being sent there to be left for dead.

Chris Paul then go shoot Oklahoma the city. Not only does he show that he has a lot left in the tank and eventually it moved to Phinish, but he carried that team that was looking to tank to the playoffs and Al Horford, who didn't play a ton and okay see worked with the team, said he's you know, professionals, Al Horford is stayed in shape. And it's when, as I've said before, when the Boston Celtics made that trade, I actually talked to j T. I'm like, yeah, what

are y'all doing? Like I feel like y'all need a point guard? Like why are y'all bringing Al Horford back? Clearly Brad knew something we didn't know. And Al is playing absolutely incredible basketball. He has been the key to this series and really throughout the playoffs for them. I mean, at the basketball that he's playing, I think we're starting to see some of the Milwaukee Bucks missing Chris Middleton. Wesley Matthews has been incredible. He's playing great defense, he's

knocking shots down. But you can't replace Chris Middleton and his and what he brings to that offense, his big shot making in the fourth quarter, um the Boston Celtics defense also having an account for him. You can't replace that, and I think we're starting to see some of that impact. And although although Drew has been more aggressive and Johannice is doing what Johannice does, you're just starting to see Chris Middleton and the gap that he leaves by not

being there. And now Boston is headed back home to the two. They took home court advantage back. I'm excited to see this game five, this pivotal game, Game five. You know, there's some stat that says whoever wins game five and or two two series goes on to win the series eighties something percent of the time. So this is a huge game. Boston can't let this one get away, and then I have to win two in the rowing

and starting that with going back to Milwaukee. So I'm excited to see what's gonna happen with this game, this game five for them, obviously excited for what's gonna happen with our Game five, but I think that's gonna be an incredibly good game and we'll see, man the best team win. I am taking the uh Sultans Game five, holding down the garden, taking the seeds. I say he might have a problem de picked Otherwise, Jackson's gonna cut the podcast off about it to no disrestract to Milwaukee fans.

But I like doing the podcast. I enjoy it, so I hope you understand. And the Mavericks and seventies sixers both tie up their series to the two. We'll hit those real quick and we'll get out of here. I want to go lay my head on Hazel shoulder. Maybe dropped a few tiers, a few more. Uh, we just try to move forward. But before we get out of here. The Dallas Mavericks, Dorry and Phinney Smith had a huge game. There was one play in particular that I want to highlight.

Luca caught the ball on the left wing, had an open shot, the guy rotated off Phinney Smith. Luca kicked it to the corner of Phinney Smith. One point game at the time. If I'm not mistaken, Phinney Smith drained the three. Dor and Phinney Smith I've spoke about his extension on this podcast. The player that he has become is absolutely amazing. It's no shocker to me that he had the three point shooting game tonight because he has worked and worked and worked, and he's become a shooter.

And it's absolutely and are able to see. Um Maxi Kleiber is shooting twenty four from nine three forty nine point something percent, Dorrian Phinney Smith is shooting forty percent from three, and Reggie Bullock can shooting forty one percent from three. And there's your reason of why that series is tied up to the two. The other guys are doing what they're supposed to do. Now something to watch for. Can those guys hit those same shots? In Finnis role

players always play better at home. That is what you if you haven't noticed, pay attention. That's what happens historically in the NBA. But those shots are very, very very vital. And what what the Mavericks cannot afford is to have another thirty nine point Luca Knight ten seven four you leven. They need other guys to have a great games. So that's something to watch for. And in the seventies sixers, this series looked totally different since the Big Fellow came back.

What you'd expect, but they have done I mean, they pretty much dominated the last two games, Like, at no point in those last two games that I think like, oh, Miami's about to win this game. Joel has changed everything from Miami's defense and trying to stop him and Miami uh and Miami's offense and trying to score with him there. I mean, he's been incredible on both sides of the floor.

James Harden, we we saw some of the James Harden that we're you, We're we've been accustomed, growing accustomed to see him over the years. In that fourth quarter, I think you have four threes and he has some daggers and it looked like old James Hard. That's something to watch as this series moved forward, because with the way Miami's garden Joel, they're pretty much saying James is going to have to beat us, and so that's something to watch.

Can can what we conceive continue to see the same James Harden that we've seen for years, or will Miami be able to get James Hard back at Bay in the seventeen point average that he had prior to last night's game in the series. That is something to watch. I also think Jimmy Butler has had incredible game especially

the last two games. Bam out of Bay. You had a really good game last game, and Tyler Hero played better game for with all of those guys playing better, and to still walk off losing by eight or whatever they lost by, that's a worry. That's the big worry. So looking forward to get game five. Game five in Miami, I am going to take Do Do Do Do Do Do Do Do Do Do Doo. I'm taking Miami. Game five in Miami. I got the Miami heat winning that game. We'll see how it goes. Pilloto Game five. That's it.

That's a rap from the Draymond Green Show. Again. I apologize for my lack of energy. Um but I'm brutal day. Rest in peace, Adrian plain again. I love you, my brother, until next time. That's a wrap in peace.