Even though Draymond Green does not always score the most points, he does many of the gritty things that help his team win basketball games. Even with the addition of Kevin Durant, Green finds ways to get it done, leading the Golden State Warriors in rebounds (10.1), assists (7.1), steals (2.3) and blocks (1.6). He is certainly one of the most consistent and skilled players in the league. He's only averaging 10.9 points a game, but Green says it's not all about scoring.
Green recently spoke to ESPN about his role on the Warriors:
“I do turn down some shots, but I think that's just basketball knowledge,” Green said to ESPN. “If I'm open and KD‘s open, if you're smart, you throw the ball to KD and let him shoot it. If I'm open and Steph’s open, if you have any type of sense, you throw the ball to him and let him shoot it. If I'm open and Klay is open, if you have any brainpower, you'll throw the ball to him and let him shoot it. So that's just the way I play the game of basketball.”
Draymond Green also had a lot to say regarding his critics:
“I think I'm one of the best players in the NBA,” Green said to ESPN. “Am I going to go out and score 30 every night? Absolutely not. But I didn't say I was one of the best scorers. I think I'm one of the best players, and I think anybody should believe that. I think if you don't believe that, you're failing yourself, and you're not allowing yourself to be that … But I don't say that in a sense of, ‘Oh, I'm one of the best. I'm better than Steph, I'm better than KD.' Like, that isn't me. When I just look at the game, that's how I feel.
“But the things that I do are more self-gratifying than anything. I don't do something to say, ‘Man, I wonder if they saw that screen I just set. I wonder if they saw what I just did to help him get that bucket.' I don't do that, but I'll run down the court feeling amazing about it. That's just kind of how I am.”
Curry echoed Green's importance to the Warriors regardless of the stats he provides:
“What he's extremely good at … the intangibles of a game,” the back-to-back MVP guard said. “Getting a steal here, getting a one-on-one defensive stop here, playmaking in transition, finding an open guy [and] obviously, knock down shots. He can make stuff happen scoring-wise, but with the weapons that we have, he knows when he gets the ball in the middle of the paint, he can pick and choose where to move the ball and get a guy a shot that helps the flow of our offense.”
With all that being said, Draymond Green has a case for what he claims. He is a top talent in the NBA and a huge reason to why the Warriors have been so good the last couple of years. Without him, the Warriors would not be the same team. Green is able to control the game through his offensive and defensive abilities, and he certainly makes the rest of his teammate's stats a lot better.
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