Durant: Green dispute influenced decision to leave Warriors

The in-game argument last season with teammate Draymond Green influenced Kevin Durant's decision to leave the Golden State Warriors in free agency, Durant disclosed Thursday. A guest on ESPN's "First Take," Durant said their dispute put too much-unwanted attention on the Warriors and his free agency.

"I wish that wouldn't have happened," Durant said of the argument. "I feel like that was a situation that definitely could have been avoided. It really came out of nowhere. For us, everybody (outside the team) was looking for something to tear us down with and I think they used that. "That just brought in a firestorm where every day it was about my free agency, every day was about my disposition as a player, what I look like on the bench, what I look like in the game. It opened up a lot of nonsense that could have been avoided. And I and Draymond talked about it."

Durant elected to sign with the Brooklyn Nets over the summer. The former league MVP isn't expected to play this season as he recovers from a torn Achilles suffered in the NBA Finals in June. The argument occurred on Nov. 12, 2018, when Durant reportedly jawed at Green for not getting him the ball. Green responded, reportedly by calling Durant a choice name and telling him to leave the team because the Warriors were a championship-winning squad without him.

Golden State suspended Green one game in the aftermath. "First Take" personality Stephen A. Smith asked Durant more directly about how the spat influenced his decision to head to the Nets.

"I mean, your teammate talks to you that way, you think about it a little bit," Durant, 31, said. "Like I said, we talked about it. But definitely, for sure (it was a factor). I'm not going to lie about it."

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)