Draymond Green has been one of the best defenders in the NBA over the last decade and if you ask the man himself, he’d say he is the best defender ever.
Green had another good campaign on that end this season and his efforts were rewarded with a spot on the All-Defensive Second Team. He isn’t happy with it, however, as he considers it a bit of an insult.
“Yours truly made Second Team All-Defense, it’s like a backhanded compliment, like a backhanded slap in the face,” Green said on The Draymond Green Show. “Like, ‘Hey man you’re one of the best defenders, hey you’re Second Team.’ C’mon, man. I find it to be funny in a sense. I definitely think I had a First Team All-Defense type of year. Now, you take into account, we didn’t win as many games, but did other teams win that many more games? Or is it because we had an off year to our standards? Interesting.”
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Green did go on to give his thanks to the voters and said it is a great honor, although he holds himself to higher standards. This is the eighth time Green has made an All-Defensive Team, with this being his fourth second-team selection. You can make the case he should have made the first team, but the team record probably ensured it wouldn’t happen.
Draymond Green’s Former Teammate Explained What Makes Him A Great Defender
Marreese Speights spent three seasons with the Warriors from 2013 to 2016 and got to see Green operate at the peak of his powers. He stated that Draymond’s instincts are terrific and that he has fast hands, which allow him to guard big, mean, and smaller guards as well. Speights also stated that Green has been guarding players bigger than him his whole life, so knows what it takes to take on those assignments.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, meanwhile, called Draymond the best defender he’d ever seen and that is saying something, as he played with the likes of Michael Jordan, Dennis Rodman, Scottie Pippen, and Tim Duncan.
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