Draymond Green is a fairly versatile forward. He can handle the ball and make plays for others on the offensive end. On the defensive end, Green is capable of anchoring a defense by himself and is comfortable guarding almost any player for spurts.
One of the noted weaknesses in Green’s game has been his scoring, in particular his ability from the perimeter. Draymond Green shoots 31.7% from the 3PT line for his career, and he shot below 30.0% from beyond the arc in the last 3 seasons prior to the current 2021-22 season.
With that being said, Draymond Green had an outstanding year shooting the ball during the 2015-16 season, averaging 38.8% from beyond the arc on 3.2 attempts a game. There’s no question that he’s shown that he can shoot it well in the past.
In a recent interview with Anthony Slater of The Athletic, Draymond Green expressed confidence in his jumper and stated that he can “shoot the s*it out of the ball” while adding that it was a mental hurdle to get to the point he was back during the 2015-16 season.
“The shot feels pretty good,” Green said. “I think when you go so long without shooting, it’s a mental hurdle you have to get over. I’ll say that’s where I am. But I can shoot the shit out the ball. I know that.”
What is that mental hurdle?
“A wise man once told me: If you don’t use something, you lose it,” Green said.
Green is referring to those Durant years.
“Yeah, you don’t use it, and all of a sudden I’m taking one 3 every three games and if I miss it, my percentages go to shit,” Green said. “Before you know it, in 10 games, I’m 0-for-7, my percentage has gone to hell, and then that can fuck with your confidence.”
Then defenses increasingly began to ignore him, as his percentages and confidence waned. That disrespect only hurt the confidence more.
“Absolutely,” Green said. “I’m just getting over that.”
Still getting over that or have gotten over it?
“I’m getting there,” Green said.
It will be difficult for Draymond Green to get to the level that he was in 2015-16, but it’s clear that he still believes that he can shoot the ball. Green is currently shooting an astounding 60% from 3PT range, though that has come at less than 1 attempt a game.
If Draymond Green can improve his shooting and provide some spacing for his teammates, that will make the Warriors an even better team. Steve Kerr has previously stated that he wants Draymond Green shooting 2-3 3PT shots a game. Perhaps we’ll see Green make that adjustment as the season goes along.
