Steve Kerr tried to calm Draymond Green in animated Game 5 exchange

Draymond reveals Kerr tried to calm him in animated Game 5 chat originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea

When Draymond Green is amped up and in his zone, not even his coach can calm him.

And that’s exactly what the defending NBA champion Warriors needed Wednesday night as they faced playoff elimination.

After a 121-106 Game 5 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals at Chase Center, Green revealed to NBC Sports Bay Area Warriors reporter Kerith Burke the in-the-heat-of-the-moment conversation he had with Steve Kerr.

"He tried reeling me in," Green explained. "He pulled me to the side and he said, 'Hey man, Zach Zarba’s going to give you a tech, and you know Zach’s one of the best officials we got.' I said, 'He is definitely one of the best officials in this league, but he’s just going to have to give me a tech tonight 'cause I’m locked in. Whatever it takes to win this game, I’m doing, and I can’t dial myself back.

"I need all the energy and aggressiveness that I have, and if he gives me a tech, Coach, then they just going to get a point and I just got to keep going.' "

Green is known for his outspoken leadership and providing his team a spark, but on Wednesday, that was amplified to keep the Warriors' season alive -- especially in the fourth quarter, when the Lakers had a chance to build on their momentum. Green's enhanced aggressiveness and energy completely shut that down, though.

"Draymond was incredible," Kerr told Burke postgame. "He started out the game just with so much emotion. We actually tried to calm him down a little bit. He's such a competitor and he's a great player. When he attacks and he scores like that, we're a much better team."

Green's impact doesn't always show on a stat sheet. He has averaged 8.5 points this season and 8.7 points over his 11-year NBA career, and in this series against the Lakers, he had six, 11, two and eight points in the first four games, respectively.

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But on Wednesday, he dropped 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field and 1-of-2 shooting from 3-point range, and also contributed 10 rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block in just under 30 minutes played.

"Draymond gave us another one of those talks after the last game," Warriors guard Moses Moody told Burke after the win. "Just saying the magnitude of each game, the whole narrative changed after one game and you could feel it. To be up 3-2 is completely different than 3-1. ...

"He was very important, even stuff that don't show up on the stat sheet, the leadership, obviously, the energy. He has a way of controlling energy and winning the mental battle as well."

The Warriors certainly will need their vocal leader if they're to win Friday in LA and force a winner-take-all Game 7 on their home court in San Francisco.

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