SAN FRANCISCO — After a five-game suspension, Draymond Green sat at the podium Sunday and said he would play basketball like he always does. This is everything the Warriors and their fans have ever wanted.
Green’s basketball performance is rarely a liability. He is an excellent defender and effective communicator. He can orchestrate the crime. His basketball intellect is at a savant level.
“I’m going to play basketball like I play basketball,” Green said. “The way I play basketball got me here. The way I play basketball has brought me tremendous success both individually and as a team. So I will always be myself. I won’t change that.”
All fair statements – except that it’s not his game that’s in question.
It’s Green’s behavior that has hurt the Warriors. This is the cause of six games lost to suspensions in a 24-game period dating back to the 2023 NBA Playoffs. For this reason he was thrown from the plane three times during the same period. The Warriors had a 3-3 record in games in which Green was suspended and 0-3 in games in which he was sent off. Teams that have three wins and six losses will have their eyes on the lottery starting in February.
It’s Green’s actions outside of basketball that need to change to avoid such slumps. No more opponents in a headlock or with his footprint on their chest. No more teammates feeling his fist either. It’s an emotional adjustment, yes, but he understands it’s necessary.
“I have to be on the court for my teammates,” Green said. “Our chances of winning go down dramatically if I’m not out there. So as one of the leaders of this group, I have to be better at being there. I just have to find other ways. That’s the biggest lesson in it. You have to be there for your teammates.”
You have to be there for your teammates. Green would be more available if he could adopt this policy for the remainder of the season – and for the length of his contract. The Warriors could benefit from posting signs with these eight words throughout Chase Center, from the practice field and weight room to the locker room and lounge.
Given the timing and circumstances, as well as their 8-9 record, could there be a more appropriate rallying cry?
Green’s return Tuesday in Sacramento is, on paper, an opportunity for the Warriors to restart. They have lost seven of nine, and in five of those defeats he was either sent off early or was unavailable at all.
While Klay Thompson’s shooting efficiency took a noticeable jump during Green’s suspension and Andrew Wiggins scored his first 30-point game, Golden State’s defensive rating of 118.7 during those five games ranked 21st among the 30 teams in that span .
“With Draymond, our defense will immediately be much better,” said coach Steve Kerr. “We know that.
“And then it’s about finding the right combinations within the game. Find rhythmic and clicking combinations. We are looking for the best two-way version of our team.”
While the Warriors can come up with winning combinations without Green, there’s no doubt he’s in the best two-way version they can put together. The Warriors don’t know their potential without Green, but they know it’s limited. Given the potential he has and good health across the roster, that’s the only way to determine their ceiling.
This brings us back to behavior change. The Warriors don’t want Green to become a lazy drone – as if! – but that he limits his prodigious energy to basketball matters. Grab the rebound and go. Shout out for a great defensive play. Defend all five opponents in a 24-second possession. Bark with a questionable whistle if you must.
But don’t let another outbreak force the NBA office to separate him from the team that needs him.
“Draymond has to find a way not to cross the line,” Kerr said. “I’m not talking about an expulsion or a technical investigation [foul]. I’m talking about an act of physical violence. This is inexcusable.”
Green has had enough conversations with his longtime friend Joe Dumars, who is also the league’s chief disciplinarian, to know that further misconduct will result in harsher punishments.
His mission is to understand the difference between the intense competitive behavior that makes him a great player and what makes him a bully and therefore unavailable.
“They’ve made it clear that they’re going to hold me accountable for everything I’ve done before,” Green said of the NBA. “That’s OK. I have to adapt to where I see fit, where my teammates see fit, where my coaches see fit, where our front office sees fit – the people I care about and who I trust. When I hear them say something, it means something to me. And that’s all people [at Chase] in this routine every day.”
The Warriors, players, coaches and executives had their say. They want Green back. They’ll get him on Tuesday. And this time, realizing they’re just a fringe playoff team without him, they’d like to keep him.
Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast