Draymond Green could return from toe injury at next homestand
The Golden State Warriors will have to to finish their five-game road trip without Draymond Green, as head coach Steve Kerr said the All-Star forward could return at the earliest next homestand.
Green has not played since November 15 — missing nine games so far — with a sprained right big toe. The injury came one game after he was suspended for an altercation with teammate Kevin Durant.
Kerr did say that Green has been been able to do straight-line movements and put shots up in practice but added that this can be a tough injury to heal. The former Defensive Player of the Year’s presence has been missed with the Warriors allowing 115.0 points per game without him compared to 110.4 points per game with him.
The Warriors dropped the first two games of the road trip in Toronto and Detroit before topping the Hawks on Monday night. They will face the Cavaliers on Wednesday and Bucks on Friday before traveling home to start a two-game homestand next Monday.
Warriors depth tested
In the nine games Green has missed, the Warriors are just 4-5, which dropped them to 16-9 and fourth place in the West. Of course, star guard Stephen Curry also missed seven of those games, but the Warriors have had their depth tested in the frontcourt during Green’s absence.
Center Damian Jones, a former first-round pick, was recently lost for the season after suffering a torn left pectoral muscle, and injured big man DeMarcus Cousins is not yet ready to return to action while recovering from a torn ACL.
In their stead, the Warriors are turning to Kevon Looney and Jordan Bell to fill in down low. Looney, a 2015 first-round pick, has snatched up 5.3 rebounds in 19.0 rebounds per game while shooting 59.8 percent from the field. Bell, meanwhile, is averaging 2.5 points and 2.7 boards in 12.0 minutes per game.
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