The importance of Draymond Green to the Golden State Warriors is an often-overlooked fact, especially by those who value scoring over every other facet that makes up the game of basketball.
That is understandable. Scoring puts the butts on the seats, draws the eyes toward the television, and – most importantly – is the cash cow that allows revenue streams to flow endlessly.
Green is by no means a premier bucket getter. He is averaging 5.2 points per game, on track to be the lowest since his rookie season when he averaged 2.9.
The days of him averaging double-digits in scoring are long gone; the last time that happened was in 2017-2018, when he averaged 11 points per game.
That decline in scoring productivity has been accompanied by a sharp decline in shooting proficiency. Green is shooting a measly 18.6% from three-point range this season on only 1.8 attempts per game. On two-point shots, he is shooting 44.8%. Such a mediocre shooting split does not usually entail All-Star level production.
That is why Green, on a certain level, has always been deemed “overrated” to the point that he has become severely underrated. He doesn’t score like it’s breathing, like Kevin Durant. He can’t shoot and warp defenses the way his teammate, Stephen Curry, does on a nightly basis. He can’t be the all-around dominant force that LeBron James has become.
So the questions are these: Why are the Warriors outscoring opponents by 13.3 points per 100 possessions with Green on the floor? Why is their offense much better with Green playing than with him on the bench, with the Warriors offense seeing an increase of 12.8 points per 100 possessions during his minutes, second only to Curry on the team?
Because Green’s value cannot be measured by mere scoring ability, but by plays like this:
Telepathy and mind-reading are questionable in terms of their existence in the real world, but the connection between Green and Curry – as shown above, where Curry signals to Green to flip the direction of the hand-off to confuse the on-ball defender and take advantage of the dropping big man – almost makes one believe that such things are possible.
Green’s offensive value is tied to that of Curry’s. They are intertwined in a basketball mind-meld of sorts. Their natural chemistry was built during a decades-long partnership, one that saw the rise of a dynasty and its eventual downfall. Both of them are currently trying to revive it, amid growing pains and bouts of inconsistency that has been plaguing the entire team.
When the news of Green being a late injury scratch against the Miami Heat spread, the anticipation of a win turned into severe doubt.
Without Green – a former Defensive Player of the Year – the team’s defense was suddenly without its floor general. On offense, the Warriors were suddenly without a genius-level basketball IQ who could call out plays, distribute and place the ball to where it needed to be, and most important, the one who could unlock Curry’s ultimate offensive form.
Without Green, the Warriors were missing their main playmaker, as evidenced by his assists average of 8.3 per game – 6th in the league overall and one of two big men among the top 10, the other being Nikola Jokic.
“We obviously know what [Green] brings defensively, we never take that for granted,” Curry said after the game. “But offensively, it required us to kind of dumb things down a little bit and play more matchup on offense where you’re trying to kind of exploit matchups and attack that way.”
Green’s absence was immediately apparent. Curry struggled to establish a rhythm on offense, especially against a smart defensive team such as the Heat.
With Curry handling the ball and calling for screens to be set for him, the Heat would throw traps and doubles his way, completely content with anyone not named Stephen Curry making plays or shooting.
Normally, it would be Green receiving Curry’s pass above, acting as the release valve on the short roll. With two defenders committing themselves to Curry, Green would typically dissect the backline defense by either finding the open man or scoring himself. Without Green, however, the possession falls apart.
Curry’s struggles reflected on the entire Warriors offense, and without anyone taller than 6-foot-7-inches on the roster (due to injuries to Green, Kevon Looney, James Wiseman, and Marquese Chriss), the Heat feasted in the paint.
They had a 28-18 points-in-the-paint advantage at the half, and took advantage of a Warriors defense focused on defending the paint by kicking out to open shooters on the perimeter, resulting in an 8-of-17 clip from three-point range to close out the first half.
With the Warriors facing a 61-46 deficit to start the 3rd quarter, Curry’s struggles continued, but contributions from the supporting cast started pouring in. Kelly Oubre had 23 points on 4-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. He has been seeing an uptick in his shooting percentages – for the month of February, he is shooting 25-of-54 (46.3%) on threes.
“[Looking for Oubre on open shots] has always been the right play, and he’s shooting the ball a lot better,” Curry said. “It’s just a matter of creating good shots offensively for everybody.”
“I think Kelly’s just gotten comfortable,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s always hard to go to a new team, a new set of circumstances, new terminology, all that stuff. He’s gotten comfortable with his surroundings and he’s just played extremely well.”
Andrew Wiggins finished with 23 points and 8 rebounds on an efficient 8-of-16 from the field and 4-of-9 (44.4%) on threes. Despite committing 6 turnovers, Wiggins provided positive value overall; with him on the floor, the Warriors outscored the Heat by 25 points, a team-high.
Eric Paschall, the lone healthy center in the roster, provided some much-needed scoring in the closing stages of the game. A center in name but not in height – Paschall is severely undersized at 6-foot-6-inches – he has been counted on in the second unit to guard men much larger than him, as well as trying to score in the post amid the tall trees and the danger of his shot being blocked.
Paschall found success on mismatches against relatively smaller defenders:
And scored in transition, where he used a bit of trickery and deception in faking a dribble hand-off to catch Jimmy Butler off guard, resulting in an open driving lane and an easy layup:
Kent Bazemore was the proverbial Energizer bunny, the catalyst behind the Warriors’ furious comeback. Finishing with a team-high 26 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the field and 4-of-7 shooting on threes, 8 rebounds, and 3 steals, Bazemore filled a hole that Green normally occupied, that of an offensive complement and a defensive pest.
“He was just scrappy,” Curry said of Bazemore. “Finishing at the rim, getting steals, offensive rebounds. He was kind of like a Swiss army knife tonight and we needed it without Draymond.”
Bazemore’s scoring explosion provided a cushion to Curry’s off shooting night that resulted in an uncharacteristically inefficient scoring performance. Not only was Bazemore making shots against the Heat – he was also making timely shots, including one that tied the game late in the 4th quarter and a putback in overtime that gave the Warriors the lead.
An argument can be made for Bazemore being the third-best player on this team so far, which is reflected in the advanced stats: He is leading the team in non-garbage time net rating, with the Warriors outscoring teams by 14.3 points per 100 possessions during his minutes on the floor, per Cleaning the Glass.
Lastly, the Warriors’ two-time MVP struggled to capture his usual shooting rhythm. After making his first three early in the 1st quarter, Curry wouldn’t make his second until the 3rd quarter. He was given plenty of open looks, including some from the short corner from which the distance between the line and the basket is at its shortest – but even those fell short for the greatest shooter of all time.
As is the case for most superstars and MVP-caliber players, it’s not how you start – it’s how you finish. It was certainly the case for Curry, who buried 3 of his 5 threes in the last 8 minutes of the game, including the overtime dagger that sent the Heat packing.
The final Curry three was the cherry on top of a vintage collective performance from the Warriors, whose 120-112 win will certainly go a long way in boosting their confidence.
Bereft of big-man depth and lacking the heartbeat of the team in Green, the Warriors needed step-up performances from the supporting cast, and they delivered in time to salvage a victory from what was largely expected to be a disappointing loss.
Green’s value to the Warriors cannot be disputed. The Warriors can’t expect to win and succeed consistently in the event of an extended absence. But from time to time, the Warriors’ philosophy of drawing strength in numbers can hold the fort long enough for their stars to recover.
While the cast of characters may be different – Oubre, Wiggins, Paschall, and Bazemore certainly aren’t Green, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, and Andre Iguodala – that philosophy retains significant value. – Rappler.com
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