On Thursday night as the 2022 NBA All-Star reserves were announced on TNT, the tearful moment from Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert three years ago when he was not selected as an All-Star was put at the forefront yet again.
During the TNT broadcast Thursday, Golden State Warriors All-Star Draymond Green — who was one of the people who made fun of Gobert in 2019 — was a guest, and he was asked by Kenny Smith, “Who have you seen taking this the hardest when they have not made it?”
It was teed up perfectly for Green to take a jab at Gobert.
Draymond trolls Gobert 💀 pic.twitter.com/jNZBRQIDWK
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 4, 2022
“One thing I can assure you, if I didn’t make it this year, I wasn’t going to cry. I 100% assure you that,” Green said, pointing at the camera as Smith was seen laughing and at least one other analyst (Smith, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Ernie Johnson were at the table) could be heard doing so.
“It has to be Rudy,” Green continued as more laughter from analysts could be heard. “I mean, the man cried on national television when he didn’t make the All-Star Team. Thank God he’s made it the next three.”
(It actually occurred in a small media scrum with Utah reporters before going viral).
Charles Barkley then chimed in with the intention of defending Gobert, saying, “Stop it, Dray. Leave that man alone.”
Green replied, “I mean, you can’t cry, Chuck. I said it (in 2019), I’m gonna say it now. I got killed on Twitter then, I’ll probably get killed today, but you can’t cry. Come on, man.”
Shaquille O’Neal then jumped in to say, “No, you right,” repeated several times.
Barkley then came in with a jab against Gobert.
“Come on, man. He’s French. He’s sensitive.”
Green replied, “That’s OK.”
Barkley then said of Gobert, “He’s a lover, man. Come on, there’s no mean streets in Paris.”