Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is easily the most accomplished person active in the world of basketball. In terms of championships, Kerr has won 9 championships in his career. He won 5 as a player and picked up his 4th as a coach last season when the Warriors beat the Boston Celtics.
Draymond Green has anchored the defense for all 4 of the Warriors’ championship wins, illustrating his importance to the success of the Warriors as the perfect complementary player to the superstar core of Golden State.
Kerr hailed Green as the best defender he has ever seen. This is a man that has played alongside Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, David Robinson, and more.
Steve Kerr on Draymond Green: "He's the best defender I've ever seen, and I've been around some really good ones. … I've never seen anything like it."
— Dalton Johnson (@DaltonJ_Johnson) January 5, 2023
Green’s status among the greatest defenders is often questioned. Green has never impacted the box score like some of the greatest defenders but his success and consistency with the Warriors has been remarkable to see.
Has Draymond Green Regressed Defensively?
Draymond Green won his first and only Defensive Player of the Year in 2017. Most all-time defenders have won more, with Scottie Pippen as a stark exception, who somehow won no DPOY awards. Green was leading the race for the award last season until an injury that caused him to miss months and lose steam.
There’s no way to objectively say Green has regressed defensively given his effectiveness. The Warriors have used Green a lot with their bench unit to make them more stable and it has worked really well so far. His defensive proficiency this season has been crucial to the Warriors, especially in their 5-game win streak right now.
His status as the GOAT defender will never be unanimous, with players in his era like Dwight Howard, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Rudy Gobert also in the conversation with more defensive accolades than Draymond. Kerr’s opinion shouldn’t be taken lightly and Green should get more respect for being in the conversation.
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