Draymond Green Rips Cavaliers for Major Issue in Loss to Knicks

The Cleveland Cavaliers seemed on the verge of completing a double-digit blowout win at Madison Square Garden in the Eastern Conference Finals, but the New York Knicks had other plans.

A fourth-quarter comeback led to a 115-104 win in overtime, despite New York trailing by as many as 22 points. According to Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green, that was due to a major issue with players refusing to stay with their defensive matchups.

He praised veteran guard Dennis Schröder, but put other Cavs players on blast, claiming they aren’t willing to stick with a defensive assignment.

“Dennis Schröder wanted to take on that challenge, Dennis Schröder was taking on that challenge. When Dennis Schröder left the game, things got a little bleak. Because you got guys in there that don’t really want that challenge, they don’t want to fight through the screen and say, ‘That’s my matchup, I want to stop this guy.’ They don’t do it,” he said during a recent episode of “The Draymond Green Show.”

More news:Dan Gilbert Sends Strong Message on Cavs After Game 1 Loss to Knicks

“I watch this every night in these big time playoff games of guys who ‘man I’m a defender I want to defend and you switch every [expletive] time it’s an opportunity to.’ Every time. And I don’t understand it, I don’t understand it. Guys simply don’t know how to win, don’t want to win, don’t want to do what it takes. Something along those lines,” Green said when sounding off about the Cavs’ loss.

While some might accuse Green of being a hater or overly critical, he has the resume when it comes to defense and winning NBA championships. The four-time champion won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2017 and achieved five NBA All-Defensive First Team selections during his career.

During his fiery rant, he indicated that James Harden wasn’t the one responsible for guarding Jalen Brunson one-on-one; that responsibility fell to some of Harden’s teammates, who Green didn’t name, who were “switching off.”

In the fourth quarter and overtime, Brunson seemed unstoppable, but it very well could have been because the right player didn’t guard him. It will be interesting to see how the Cavaliers might address that Brunson issue in Game 2, because for most of the game, it wasn’t a concern given their large lead.

A similar issue popped up in the Western Conference Finals, as more than a few analysts, including ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, called out Oklahoma City Thunder star Chet Holmgren for not guarding Victor Wembanyama enough in the San Antonio Spurs’ double-overtime win.

The Cavaliers get a chance to play better overall and tie the series when Game 2 arrives in New York on Thursday night.

More news:Nike Shares 8-Word Reaction to Jalen Brunson After Knicks' Comeback Win

For more about the NBA, head over to Newsweek Sports.

2026 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.

This story was originally published May 20, 2026 at 9:34 PM.