Draymond Green's bench role suggestion works perfectly in Warriors' Game 4 win
Draymond's suggestion works like a charm in Dubs' Game 4 win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
SAN FRANCISCO – Eight days after Andrew Wiggins came off the bench for the first time in his NBA career, Draymond Green volunteered for the same role despite being a starter since 2014.
And Warriors coach Steve Kerr, already pondering that possibility, embraced the suggestion offered by Draymond after he watched and analyzed Game 3 at home due to an NBA suspension.
The experiment worked. Kerr’s usage of Green was a crucial element in a 126-125 victory in Game 4 on Sunday that pulled the Warriors into a 2-2 tie in their first-round, best-of-seven NBA playoff series with the Sacramento Kings.
“He had not come off the bench in 10 years, since before I was coaching,” Kerr said. “But he came to me immediately after Game 3. He drove back to the arena and was in my office and he walked in and said, ‘What do you think about me coming off the bench?’
“I had been thinking about it already because of the way Sacramento was guarding us, and just getting another shooter on the floor.”
Green noted that the Warriors were better able to space the floor more with Jordan Poole, a three-level scoring threat, than they could with him. The usual starting lineup – Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney and Green – might be the best five-man unit in the NBA, but neither Green nor Looney are shooters.
In today’s NBA, where spacing is essential to great offense, most teams operate with four or five shooters.
Golden State’s emphatic Game 3 win came with four shooters in the starting lineup, as Green was replaced by Poole.
“Our spacing was great in Game 3,” Green said. “It was absolutely incredible. I thought it was really good for our offense. When I saw that, No. 1, it was very evident of where I needed to be on the floor.”
Operating mostly as a screener, passer and cutter, Green had 10 rebounds and seven assists. He scored 12 points, but was only 3-of-14 from the field, including 0-of-2 from distance.
“I did a good job of being where I needed,” Green said. “I missed a bunch of layups, a whole bunch of layups, but it kept the floor spaced the way it needed to be spaced and I won't keep missing those layups. I thought it was great. Just really understanding the spacing on the floor and how I needed to play in space, as well, no matter who I'm out there with.”
As organic as the process was, Kerr still wanted certainty. Despite their agreement Friday, he checked with Draymond again on Saturday to ensure they still agreed and were ready to make the move official.
“One of his words were, ‘How are you going to feel coming off the bench? You have not come off the bench in nine years. How are you going to feel?’ Green recalled. “Who f---ing cares? Who cares how I feel? If I must answer the question for you, I'm fine. I'll be ready to go when it's time for me to go in.
“But it doesn't matter how I feel. I think the right thing to do would be to start the game the exact way we started Game 3. It doesn't matter how I feel . . . it's about winning basketball games at this time of year."
The move worked splendidly for Golden State’s offense. The Warriors shot 50 percent from the field, including 41.2 percent beyond the arc. The Curry-Thompson-Poole trio combined for 80 points, on 28-of-52 shooting (53.8 percent), including 11-of-26 (42.3 percent) from distance.
And, still, Draymond played 31 minutes and was a massive defensive presence, particularly in the second half, when he was largely responsible for Kings star De’Aaron Fox shooting 5-of-15 from the field.
There is, then, no reason for regret.
“We always collaborate,” Kerr said. “The decisions we make are collaborative with our key players, so that was a collaboration.
“But Draymond offered it. And this is how we've approached a lot of playoff games.”
Most of the previous instances came under different circumstances. Wiggins came off the bench after returning from a two-month absence. Curry has come off the bench after missing time due to injury.
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Seeing Draymond come off the bench most closely resembles Kerr’s decision to start Andre Iguodala in Game 4 against the Grizzlies in the 2015 Western Conference semifinals.
The Warriors were trailing 2-1 before sweeping Games 4, 5 and 6 – with all three victories by double digits.
Kerr would not say, or even hint, what his plans are for Game 5 on Wednesday in Sacramento. Logic dictates he likely follows the same plan.
