Golden State glad to get Green back
NBA FINALS: Warriors defender takes blame for Game 5 loss, vows to control his emotions in Game 6
CLEVELAND — Nothing Draymond Green says is ever surprising, because the Golden State Warriors big man is not afraid to speak his mind.
We all should have expected the declaration that came Wednesday in his first media appearance since being suspended.
“I have strong belief that if I play Game 5, we win,” Green said, referring to the 112-97 Cleveland Cavaliers victory.
“But I didn’t because I put myself in a situation (picking up another flagrant foul, for a low blow aimed at LeBron James) where I wasn’t able to play. I think my teammates fought and didn’t play well, but still with six minutes to go, down six points, continued to battle and battle,” he said, adding he felt he let his teammates down.
“It’s on me to come out and help that battle. Not come out and try to be the superstar, try to be the hero, try to be the saving grace, none of that stuff, because being a superstar saving grace hasn’t gotten us this far — being a great team has gotten us this far.”
Golden State looked wretched defensively without its ace defender, a sharp communicator both on and off of the court, in the Game 5 drubbing. Without Green’s directing of traffic, smart positioning and second line of resistance, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James scored at will, each notching 41 points.
Green said it was “brutal” and “one of the weirdest days ever for me,” having to watch the game in a suite at the Oakland Athletics game.
“I can’t put myself in a position where I can’t be there for my teammates on the floor. I do my teammates no justice in street clothes watching the game at the A’s game,” he said.
Those teammates are understandably thrilled to be getting Green back for Game 6, especially with starting centre Andrew Bogut lost for the series due to injury.
“He anchors us — just like Bogut does, he anchors our defence,” Shaun Livingston said.
“He’s one of the smartest defenders in the league, his IQ, his rim protection. And then also I think being able to switch, that’s our strength, our small lineup … He allows us to be able to switch one through five. He’s one of the most versatile players and defenders in the league.” Klay Thompson agreed, to a point. “At the same time, we can’t just relax and let our guard down because Draymond’s coming back,” he said. “We have to go out there and win the game and put in great effort.”
They will also have to play smart basketball. Another Green flagrant foul or two technicals would mean he would be suspended for a Game 7, should the Warriors lose.
Green knows he can’t step over the edge again, but can a player that tiptoes so close to the abyss rein himself in and still be effective?
“I think I’ve got to come out and play my game regardless,” Green said. “But there are those little fine lines where you just know you can’t cross them. It’s not every play that you’re close to that line. It’s a basketball game, so there are only certain plays where you are. I just have to make sure that I’m well-composed when those situations come about, that I control my emotions, that I channel that energy and use it in a positive way to help my team and not in a way to where I may feel like it helps me as a person, me as a man, but hurts my teammates. That’s irrelevant.”
The Cavs say they don’t plan to goad Green.
“No, I think you just play the game, and I think you play hard, you give it everything you’ve got,” head coach Tyronn Lue said. “You compete for 48 minutes, and whatever happens, happens. We’re not going to go in trying to make him pick up a technical foul or flagrant foul.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr isn’t worried.
“I’d be shocked if anything happened on that front. I think he feels bad enough as it is about missing Game 5,” Kerr said.
Green’s plan is to make sure he and the Warriors don’t have to worry about another game.
“It’s an amazing feeling when you can quiet 20,000 screaming fans,” he said, referring to the Game 6 clincher in Cleveland in 2015. “We know the formula. We know the blueprint. We know that it’s not easy, though.
“We’ve got an opportunity to do something that I don’t know if it’s ever been done to where someone — maybe it has with the Lakers and Celts and all those guys — wins a championship on someone else’s floor two years in a row. We’ve got that opportunity. It’s a fun one. It will be tough.”