LOS ANGELES, CA — Does Draymond Green look skinny to you? Now, we know that Green told The Athletic’s Marcus Thompson, after Game 3 of the LA Clippers playoff series, that he lost 23 pounds ahead of the playoff run, and he and his fiancée Hazel Renee have been known to take a picture or two in front of Soul Cycle in Oakland after a workout. But one insider from Green’s camp tells us, “He looks skinny.”
I took it upon myself to ask Green directly when I had a rare moment of opportunity in Los Angeles last week, when Draymond and his son DJ (short for “Draymond, Jr.”), crashed USA Basketball’s last day of training camp at the LA Lakers’ practice facility.
[ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW THE EMBEDDED VIDEO] [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xgwyxw-G_kQ&w=560&h=315]“Just a little bit,” Green told me, flashing the “inch” finger signal, as he got snatched away by another bystander for some one-on-one time, by the leader of a community group in attendance. The newly minted $100-million-man (the value of his recently signed contract extension with the Golden State Warriors) is not easy to track down. Only Marc Spears of ESPN was able to grab him for some quotes and Ramona Shelburne was lucky enough to snag a sit-down fit for TV. A few of his quotes in that one went viral.
So my little four-word response by Green is literally only his second quote from that day in print.
Anyways, how much more weight can one lose after the initial quantum leap of 23 pounds? Another source from Green’s inner circle told me, “Now it’s just maintaining it,” and it certainly looks like Draymond’s doing so.
As LeBron James’ Space Jam 2 movie shooting rumbles on, Green can be found there training on the court built by James, as Michael Jordan once had on the set of the original Space Jam, all housed under a tent.
Two days after visiting Chase Center with Kevon Looney, D’Angelo Russell — who trained a month ago with Stephen Curry in Walnut Creek — was also back at his joke base of LA, doing dribble-hand-off and pick-and-roll drills with Green.
It’s as if there were also a script unfolding for the 2019-20 Warriors, with all the stars of the production gaining the camaraderie and chemistry needed for a successful season. Head coach Steve Kerr seemed to suggest a long-term relationship. When we asked if he and Russell had their planned meeting in LA yet, Kerr said they weren’t able to connect, but added, “We’re gonna spend a lot of time together the next few years.”
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