Draymond Green and Klay Thompson are tight with one another, both have been a part of the Golden State Warriors core that brought 3 championships to the franchise during the 2010s. So it was no surprise to see Draymond Green on the floor despite being injured to start the game for the Warriors when Klay finally made his long-awaited return from injury after 2 years in January.
It was still an odd spectacle though, with Green immediately fouling after 7 seconds to get subbed out of the game against the Cavaliers. His calf injury appears to have been quite serious too, as Green has missed the next 8 games following his appearance in the win over Cleveland. Speaking on the Draymond Green show, Dray elaborated on the thought process that saw him start the game (via NBC Sports).
“I asked them ‘can I at least just start the game’ to be out there with them? And then I said ‘Nope, I don’t want to start the game because then if I start the game and I foul, that takes away from Klay’s moment and I don’t want to take away from Klay’s moment,'” Green said.
“And (Warriors director of sports medicine Rick Celebrini) Rick said ‘no, I think it actually adds to his moment.’ And that was all I needed to hear was it adds to his moment, and so we were able to get it done to where I could start and then come out of the game.”
Klay Thompson’s return has coincided with Green’s absence and the Warriors have struggled in that time, going 4-4 since they beat Cleveland and falling behind the Phoenix Suns in the race for the 1st seed in the Western Conference. It was great to see Dray and Klay on the court together, and when Green is ready to play in earnest, the Warriors could go on another run.
