Andrew Bogut denies bitterness to Warriors: ‘I'm a sarcastic a–hole'

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Andrew Bogut sustained a season-ending knee injury early in the third quarter of Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals.

The Warriors lost Games 6 and 7 to the Cavaliers, and Golden State traded Bogut a couple of weeks later to make room for Kevin Durant.

"Look, I’m not stupid, man,” Bogut told Anthony Slater of The Athletic following his season debut in San Antonio. “The dude they made cap space for, I mean, look who he is. I’m not an idiot. You know, if it was someone else, a 12th man, I’d be pissed. But it’s one of the best players in basketball. So I totally get it.

"Was I disappointed? Of course. I wasn’t happy to get traded from a team that just went 73-9, went to the Finals, thought we had a chance to win it but didn’t. But as far as hating the Warriors? No. I kept in touch with all the guys in this locker room -- Andre, Draymond, Steph, Klay at times. Former guys like Harrison (Barnes). Steve would text me."

If you remember, things weren't exactly peachy between Bogut and the Warriors when the big man was shipped out of town.

As NBC Sports Bay Area's Monte Poole wrote back in late June 2016:

The team has grown frustrated by Bogut’s unreliability, particularly in times of greatest need ... Bogut’s well-documented injury history, according to sources, accounts for only part of the team’s annoyance ... the Warriors apparently were displeased with much of Bogut’s postseason work prior to the injury.

In November 2016, prior to Bogut facing the Warriors for the first time, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2005 draft told Sam Amick:

"I don’t buy into the sources thing. I don’t buy into all that (expletive), because this league is so two-faced and everybody is so fake. The same people who made those comments will see me tomorrow and shake my hand and ask me how my family is. This league is full of people who are full of (expletive) and shallow, and that’s what you figure out in pro sports. It’s very hard to meet a genuine person who you can call your friend in this league."

Bogut understands how his comments were perceived as him taking a shot at the Warriors. But he can explain.

[LISTEN: Warriors Outsiders Podcast: Dubs drop Bogut's debut in San Antonio]

"From afar, if you’re just reading text and you’re not looking at my body language or my mannerisms, there’s a lot of things I can say that can be misconstrued," he told The Athletic. "A s--tload of things.

"I’m a sarcastic a--hole. I like to have fun, say things. Sometimes if you’re reading in the form of text, it can come off different.”

Very true, Andrew. Very true.

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