ESPN typically has its finger on the pulse of what the general public thinks of its product. ESPN's eyes are now on Draymond Green, who recently knocked Charles Barkley's late-career tenure with the Houston Rockets while serving as an Inside The NBA co-host. Green stated his goal is not to look like Chuck in a Rockets jersey, even though Barkley averaged a double-double all four years in the Space City. Green never achieved that in a season once.
The potshot was perhaps dangerously unpopular. Worse yet for the Warriors' big man, it may be negatively influencing ESPN's view of his long-term future in a broadcasting role behind the scenes.
HOT 97's Kazeem Famuyide, a notable New York radio host likely somewhat in the know, said, "Draymond told a joke so bad it may have legitimately altered his post-NBA career."
Green's stats have fallen off in a major way late in his career with the Dubs. And disrespecting Chuck's lack of rings is one thing, but diminishing his individual NBA career, at any point, is a fool's errand. Green may be feeling like a fool for saying it soon, though.
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Inside The NBA crew 'no-sold' Draymond Green's cheap shot at Charles Barkley
Do you want more proof that Green's comment made the worst kind of waves you could make? Sports Illustrated's Jimmy Traina caught on to the rest of the Inside The NBA crew "no-sold" Green's trash-talk and called it out in a column.
"There’s a term in pro wrestling called, 'selling.' When your opponent hits you with a chair, you have to sell it by acting like you’re dead. When you’re rival insults you, you have to sell it and act like you’re devastated," Traina wrote. "The Inside the NBA crew completely no-sold Green’s line. It was so obvious that Ernie, Kenny and Charles felt it was at best unfunny and at worst disrespectful and insulting."
The cat's out of the bag. Green isn't cut out for a broadcasting career. And he may have just sealed his fate by speaking ill of the biggest Auburn Tigers and Leeds, Alabama, icon around.
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