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Draymond Green played a crucial role in helping the Golden State Warriors take down the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of their playoff series. How critical was he in the game? Well, by A LOT.
As Kendra Andrews of ESPN highlighted, Green's defense on Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets allowed the Warriors to take the 123-107 win. He limited Denver to 5-of-19 shooting as the primary defender, with much of his work focused on Nikola Jokic. The Joker shot 3-of-12 from the field when he was defended by Green.
Jokic still ended up with 25 points, but he needed 25 shots to do so. The Nuggets superstar was 12-of-25 overall.
Draymond Green held Denver to 5-of-19 shooting as the primary defender, including 3-of-12 by Nikola Jokic. Golden State shot 9-of-14 off his passes.
Yesterday, Michael Malone told me Green's absence was probably why the Nuggets went 3-1 on the Warriors during the regular season.
— Kendra Andrews (@kendra__andrews) April 17, 2022
Draymond Green did more than defending as well. He registered 12 points, six rebounds and nine assists for an all-around performance for the Dubs.
It's hard not to appreciate Green's contributions for the Warriors, and his teammates know that. In fact, Klay Thompson went as far as to calling him the best defender in the world after his brilliant showing on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr declared Green as a Hall of Famer and highlighted how important the 32-year-old forward is to the team.
Green certainly deserved those recognitions. And true enough, Golden State will need him to consistently anchor the defense and guard the opposing best player if they want any chance of returning to the NBA Finals.
By the looks of it, though, Dray appears more than ready.
