In Purdue’s 75-60 loss to UConn in the 2024 National Championship game, Boilermakers big man Zach Edey scored 37 points and grabbed ten boards in the losing effort.
Edey certainly did what he could, but UConn’s stifling defense, which took away Purdue’s ability to shoot three-pointers, was ultimately too much to overcome. The Huskies’ win felt inevitable in the second half despite Edey’s best efforts.
One person who didn’t quite see it that way was Golden State Warriors forward and podcaster Draymond Green. Gren took to X after the game to give credit to UConn forward Samson Johnson (No. 35) for making “Edey quit” early in the second half.
Job Well Done 35! You did your job tonight. It was him that made Edey quit with about 19 mins to go in the 2nd half. There was a turnover and I saw Edey body language walking back. He was done. Now rewatch the game from that point on. #FreeGame
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) April 9, 2024
“Job Well Done 35!” wrote Green. “You did your job tonight. It was him that made Edey quit with about 19 mins to go in the 2nd half. There was a turnover and I saw Edey body language walking back. He was done. Now rewatch the game from that point on.”
One person who adamantly disagreed with that assessment was FS1’s Nick Wright, who initially took to X to counter the claim.
This is a ludicrous take. UCONN was better in every facet, and an obviously deserving champion, and despite the the 37 & 10, Edey didn't play his absolute best game… BUT saying he quit is absurd.
Dude is 7'4" and played his ass off every single minute & never sat. https://t.co/KtsMWNAutm
— nick wright (@getnickwright) April 9, 2024
This is a ludicrous take. UCONN was better in every facet, and an obviously deserving champion, and despite the 37 & 10, Edey didn’t play his absolute best game… BUT saying he quit is absurd,” wrote Wright. “Dude is 7’4″ and played his ass off every single minute & never sat.”
As others noted, Johnson played a total of five minutes in the game, hardly enough time to be the cornerstone of UConn’s defensive attack.
Wright was so fired up about Green’s take that he even opened Tuesday’s episode of First Things First to address it.
"This is unfair and inaccurate, which is the worst combination."
Nick Wright responds to Draymond Green saying Zach Edey quit in the NCAA championship game: pic.twitter.com/GyTT6nj8DD
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 9, 2024
“We all make mistakes and we all have bad takes, some more than others,” said Wright. “I happen to believe it is far more important to be totally buttoned up on your details and facts. There’s a direct line with how tight and cogent your case needs to be with how critical the accusation is. If you say ‘This guy quit,’ which I think is the harshest accusation you can level against an athlete, let’s try to get basic facts right. Like, the player that I think made him quit, was he in or not in the game? The player that I’m saying made him quit did he play five total minutes and commit five total fouls? Yes, he did. Am I certain that’s actually what was happening? Did this guy quit or is this a 7’4”, 300-pound man who sat none, who played the entire game, and maybe was exhausted?
“Do I think there were moments when he was discouraged? Absolutely. I think there were moments when Caitlin Clark was discouraged Sunday night when she had a couple of full-court outlet passes that led to missed layups.
“Do I think there’s an ulterior motive for Draymond Green to try to tell everyone, “Hey guys, the person whose box score might not look that good, and maybe you didn’t notice, he actually turned the game around.’ What type of NBA player could that be congratulatory to?
“This is unfair and inaccurate, which is the worst combination.”
We’ll see if Draymond has a rebuttal anytime soon.
