Macklin Celebrini’s hilarious tweet got the Warriors locker room laughing – NBC Sports Bay Area & California

If the Sharks land the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft on Tuesday, they will get the first shot at top prospect Macklin Celebrini, the son of Rick Celebrini, the Warriors’ director of sports medicine and performance.

Not only would the Sharks add franchise-altering talent on the ice, but they would also add a locker room presence with a good sense of humor.

The latest anecdote comes from ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, who broke a January 2023 story about how Draymond Green led the charge to get a group of Warriors players and coaches — to Chicago to face the Bulls – go see young Celebrini play a match. junior hockey game for the Chicago Steel in Geneva, Illinois, about a 40-mile drive from the United Center.

And while Green and the Warriors contingent made the long drive to show their support for Macklin, they didn’t stay for the entire game, leaving after the second period, according to Kaplan.

Green and Co. missed Celebrini scoring a third-period goal in the Steel’s 4-2 loss to the Madison Capitols.

Rick stayed at the Fox Valley Ice Arena in Geneva and when he saw Macklin after the game, his son delivered an epic retort.

“Dad,” Macklin told Rick, according to Kaplan. “I go to your games all the time, and it’s really boring, and I don’t leave.”

The next day at United Center, Macklin’s tweet was relayed to the Warriors and the locker room “erupted in laughter,” according to Kaplan.

It might seem strange for Green to want to go see a junior hockey game, but he understands the world of sports better than anyone and he wasn’t going to pass up a chance to see hockey’s next star.

“How often do you get to see Sidney Crosby at 17?” Green told Kaplan.

Whether Saturday night’s Warriors in Geneva were to blame, they ended up losing to the Bulls the next day, 132-118 to fall to 21-22 in the 2022-23 NBA season.

As for the Sharks, Celebrini is the game-changing talent they’ve been looking for, and if they end up with the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, the soon-to-be 18-year-old and Green will both be playing games in the Bay Area over the next few years.

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