src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=674090812743125&ev=PageView&noscript=1"/>
Draymond Green and Kendrick Perkins haven’t always seen eye-to-eye, but the respect is still there.
After the Warriors evened the series with a 107-88 win over the Celtics in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night, Perkins gave props to Green on Twitter.
One thing I respect about Draymond is that he talked his shit and backed it up tonight. His impact on the game was way bigger than some box score!!! Carry the hell onâ¦
Green finished with nine points, seven assists and five rebounds. His stats typically don’t stand out to someone who didn’t actually watch the game.
But Perkins acknowledged Green’s efforts that didn’t appear on paper.
Just three days ago, Green remained calm after the Warriors’ 120-108 Game 1 loss and said they will “be fine”.
Perkins, however, saw things much differently than Green did at the time.
"That was a whole lot of lying for the simple fact ... 'we'll be fine,' no you won't," Perkins said on NBC Sports Boston's “Celtics Postgame Live” after Game 1. "No, you won't. Listen, Payton Pritchard played eight minutes in that fourth quarter, meaningful minutes. Jaylen Brown did his thing. The bench came in and gave a huge lift. The Warriors scored 16 points in the fourth quarter. 16. That ain't just happen because they were missing shots. No, the Celtics were getting to them, they couldn't get the ball to get they shot off.
"They were on their ass like diapers on a baby. That's what it was, that's exactly what it was."
That wasn't the first time during this postseason run that the two got into an exchange.
After the Warriors' Game 6 win over the Memphis Grizzlies in the second round of the playoffs, Green went on a long rant about Perkins for comments he previously made about him, and the feud continued on social media.
Perkins, who spent 14 seasons in the NBA, knows what it takes to make it to the Finals and to win a championship. That's why it's not hard for him to understand the impact that Green has on the floor.
Green hasn't responded to Perkins' compliment just yet, but as the quest for their fourth championship in eight years continues, the Warriors will need one of their most important leaders to continue backing up his trash talk.