Draymond Green had one of the worst games of his NBA Finals career in Game 3 against the Boston Celtics. Green had a dismal box score total of 2 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 6 fouls. Dray is yet to have a good game in the NBA Finals, but Game 3 was particularly notable as a bad performance because Draymond also failed to provide on the defensive end.
Green has had a rough night after Game 3, with clips of aggressive fouls being shared on social media, accusations of prioritizing his podcast, and feuds against the Celtics fans and Cedric Maxwell all coming on his head in one fell swoop.
Despite the heat from the fans and press, Green went into the post-game press conference and owned up to his bad performance, openly saying he played like sh*t and that he was playing like he’s soft.
Green is not one to run from accountability, but he is having a particularly bad patch in terms of the criticisms being levied at him. What he provides to the Warriors in terms of his defense is crucial and is the main reason he keeps getting the minutes he does. However, Game 3 proves that if he can’t contribute on that front, he can quickly turn into an on-court liability.
Draymond just couldn’t find a rhythm all game and the Warriors suffered as a result. The Celtics overran them offensively and ended up with a 16-point win, despite the Warriors overturning a 17-point deficit and taking the lead in the third quarter.
The Warriors need to find a solution to make Draymond’s impact become more noticeable again, or else they may have to wrestle with possibly reducing his minutes for this Finals run.