Without Draymond Green, Warriors need Chase Center fans to generate energy
Without Draymond, Warriors need home crowd to generate energy originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Programming note: Warriors fans can watch complete Game 3 coverage Thursday on NBC Sports Bay Area, NBCSportsBayArea.com and the NBC Sports app. “Warriors Pregame Live” starts at 6 p.m., followed by Bob Fitzgerald and Kelenna Azubuike on the game broadcast at 7, with “Warriors Postgame Live” and then “Dubs Talk Live” immediately after the game.
SAN FRANCISCO – Though one man will replace Draymond Green in the starting lineup when they take the floor Thursday night for Game 3 of their first-round series against the Kings, they’re hoping for replacement by committee.
A committee composed of more than 18,000 fans enough to fill Chase Center, because that’s about what it will take to generate bring the level of juice Draymond generally brings.
“Crowd’s going to be in it,” coach Steve Kerr said Wednesday. “We know that. We’re excited to be home. We have a great opportunity in front of us.”
The challenge within that opportunity is enormous. The Warriors since 2014 have been powered mostly by three elements: the supernova that is Stephen Curry, the shooting pyrotechnics of Klay Thompson and the voltage provided by Green.
With Green serving a one-game suspension for his part in a mini-fracas with Sacramento center Domantas Sabonis, only Curry and Thompson will be available. And they might not be enough to keep the Warriors from feeling the indignity of losing the first three games of a best-of-seven series.
While Kerr and his staff decide who starts at forward alongside Andrew Wiggins, the energy in the room is beyond their control. The players who will suit up are hoping the Chase committee comes through as it did during the regular season, when the Warriors, at 33-8, posted the third-best home record in the NBA.
If the Warriors can glean any optimism from the circumstances, it is in the timing. Being home means having hope.
“It’s huge,” Kevon Looney said. “For (Draymond) to be gone, it’s better to be at home. We’ve been a lot better at home. We’ve handled adversity a lot better at home. Having that crowd there makes a huge difference. We have the best crowd in the NBA.
“When one of your best guys is missing, we add that crowd and it gives us the extra boost that we need.”
On 13 occasions during the regular season, the Warriors overcame double-digit deficits to achieve victory. They are the first NBA team to do so in four consecutive games -- Feb 26 through March 3 -- since Elias Sports Bureau began tracking NBA play-by-play in 1997. Two of those comebacks wiped out deficits of at least 20 points and turned them into double-digit victories.
All 13 of those 13 games were at Chase. That can build a mountain of faith.
The Warriors knew going into this Western Conference series that they needed to win at least one road game to advance. They were outplayed, particularly in the closing minutes, to such degree in Games 1 and 2 at Golden 1 Center that the question is not whether they can beat the Kings at home but whether they beat them anywhere.
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And, moreover, can they do it in Game 3 without Draymond? The Warriors under Kerr have never won a postseason game without Green. It was one game, in the 2016 NBA Finals, but that Game 5 loss was enough to swing the momentum toward LeBron James and the Cavaliers, who won in seven games.
The Warriors this time are trying swing the momentum their way. They’re trying to keep the Kings from dominating the series and times are too desperate to drop the burden on whomever replaces Draymond in the starting lineup.
Jonathan Kuminga is one option, and he didn’t bring much to the first two games. Donte DiVincenzo is another, and he wasn’t his best self in Games 1 and 2. Another option, should Kerr decide to go super small, is Jordan Poole, who is playing poorly on a tender left ankle.
None of them can bring what Draymond brings, so the Warriors will cross their fingers, tinker with rotations and hope to get outside help from their fans.
“Sports is crazy,” general manager Bob Myers said. “We’ll see what happens. I believe in the team. We’ve won without (Draymond) before. We’ve won without other players before. We’ve won playoff games without Curry. It’s going to be fun. The crowd is going to be great. We’ve been good at home all year. I’m excited.
“It’s going to be a very telling performance. It’s going to be fun to see. But I believe it. I believe the players believe they have enough. I know Steve thinks we have enough.”
They might have enough. But if we learned anything this season about these Warriors it is that their best chance to look like an elite team is when they are on their floor.
Given the conditions, the Chase committee might be their best fifth starter.
