Draymond Green returned to action and the Golden State Warriors instantly improved their level. The big man has been one of the best defensive players in the league for years but his value on the offensive end is also unmeasurable. Even though he’s not the greatest scorer ever, the things that Draymond provides are really big for the Dubs.
After the Dubs beat the Sacramento Kings, 137-106 on Monday night, Draymond was the subject of a series of compliments by teammates and the head coach. As soon as he came back, things went better for the team.
Steve Kerr has made it clear that Draymond is a key piece on his team, calling him the “point forward” of the team, something that’s been used for other players like LeBron James. He’s not the greatest scorer, but Green provides a lot of ball movement to the team.
“Draymond Green is the best defensive player in the World, plus he gets us organized on offense. He’s our point-forward”.
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Kerr wasn’t the only one praising the defensive master. Stephen Curry also gave him some flowers for his impact on the team after their victory over the Kings.
Via ESPN:
“Draymond obviously has helped a lot in terms of getting us organized,” Curry said. “And especially when I get off the ball and starting again. And so [Sunday], started seeing pictures of it a little bit clearer and understand spacing and, obviously, guys have got to make shots, and everybody pitched in. It was a really good effort across the board, guys staying ready off the bench, and defensively, we gave ourselves energy and life from the beginning. On a back-to-back, you need that presence to get everything flowing, and then it translated to good offense.”
Green’s return was the best thing that could happen to the Warriors. He’s ready to do big things and help his team succeed although teams won’t be as easy as before. He’s been there for his team even if it is to just support them, as he did with Curry. Draymond knows things are different now and the Warriors need to figure things out before becoming actual competitors in the association.
With Steph Curry dropping a lot of points, Kelly Oubre waking up and bringing the best of his game to the court as well as the things that Green, Andrew Wiggins and Rookie James Wiseman can do, the Warriors have a big chance to compete.
The job won’t be easy for the Dubs but Curry, Draymond and co. are ready to face any challenge in the league. This team doesn’t have big expectations after losing Klay Thompson and that could be an advantage for them.
