Veteran Draymond Green has responded to Tari Eason after the Houston Rockets' forward offered a taunt to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.
After the Rockets completed a tenth-straight victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center, Eason took to his Instagram to remind the Warriors that Houston after very much coming for the Western Conference's tenth-seed.
Draymond Green has fired back at Tari Eason ahead of the Golden State Warriors' meeting with the Houston Rockets on April 4
On his Instagram story, Eason repeatedly exclaimed to the Warriors "to come out to play", along with the caption, 'I know they not liking this!!!'' Houston's winning-streak has seem them pull within a game of Golden State for the tenth spot just a fortnight out from the conclusion of the regular season.
Unsurprisingly, Green fired back on his podcast on Thursday, making reference to the fact Eason himself has been out of the lineup since January 1. The 22-year-old will remain out for the season after surgery on a leg injury.
"I'm a little surprised that he hasn't played in a game since January 1st. So it's kind of tough to come out yelling 'come out and play' and you're not gonna play. It puts a lot of strain on your guys, like, you can't get out there and help them. "Draymond Green
In fairness to Eason, Green was actually the one who may have initiated the back-and-forth when he stated, "I don't give a damn about the Rockets," following Sunday's loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Regardless, it was still an easy and rather cringey response from Eason who won't be able to walk the talk when Houston host Golden State in what's sure to be a pivotal matchup at Toyoto Center on April 4.
The Rockets' winning-streak has also largely come in the absence of young star Alperun Sengun who's also out for the season, while the Warriors are riding back-to-back wins against the Miami Heat and Orlando Magic earlier in the week.
It's not the first time Golden State have formed a rivalry of sorts with a young team -- they famously faced and beat a young Memphis Grizzlies in the second-round of the 2022 postseason, then defeated their pacific rival Sacramento Kings in the first-round of the 2023 playoffs. This one feels a little less legitimate given both teams are still up against it to even make the postseason.