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Draymond Green has been a true warrior for the Golden State Warriors this season by playing in all 19 games to begin the year. Unfortunately, this streak appears to be coming to an end due to the veteran dealing with a calf injury.
With the Warriors set to take on the Denver Nuggets in their final NBA Cup group stage game on Tuesday, Green is considered doubtful to play due to a calf issue. Head coach Steve Kerr relayed this message to reporters after the team's practice on Monday evening.
“He's been amazing every day,” Kerr stated, via Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “He's kept himself in really good shape. Obviously, doubtful tomorrow. I would call it doubtful. We have to be careful for the reasons you're asking this question. Doubtful tomorrow; we'll see how he holds up. But this is what it's going to be for our team at this point in Draymond and Steph's careers. We're going to try and keep their minutes down as best we can. You gotta try to keep them healthy by being proactive.
“If they're dealing with nagging injuries like Steph's knees last week, like Draymond's calf now, we gotta manage it all for sure.”
It is worth noting that Stephen Curry recently missed a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to bilateral patellofemoral pain. The Warriors went on to lose this game 105-101 in a hard-fought home loss.
Ahead of Tuesday's matchup with Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets, Golden State is 12-7 on the season and on a four-game losing streak. The Dubs have already clinched West Group C in the NBA Cup, so they will be playing this game in order to determine their seeding for the knockout rounds.
Draymond's calf injury is simply a cause of wear and tear for a 34-year-old who has played in 989 games in his career, including the postseason.
How Draymond Green's injury impacts Warriors
Regardless of how you feel about Green, there is no denying that he is the most important player on Golden State's roster next to Curry.
Between his defensive abilities and leadership, Green is an irreplaceable part of the Warriors' roster. Without him, the team will obviously turn to players like Jonathan Kuminga, Andrew Wiggins, and Kyle Anderson to fill his minutes, but nobody is able to replicate the unique production Green supplies the Warriors with.
This season, in particular, Green has stepped up and and ranks second on the team in rebounding and assists. It is also worth noting that he leads the Warriors in blocked shots this season.
In 19 games, Green has averaged 8.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.0 blocks, and 1.0 steals per game. He is averaging only 28.5 minutes per game this season, a similar trend to that the Warriors are following with Curry in order to maintain their freshness as the year progresses.
When Draymond is on the court, the Warriors are a stout defensive team that tends to move in unison with one another. Everything changes when Green isn't on the court, as Golden State is much more susceptible to giving up open shots around the rim. This is bad news for the Warriors since they are set to go up against Jokic, who is currently leading the MVP race.
The good news for the Dubs is that this injury won't sideline Green indefinitely. His calf issue has obviously flared up recently, and the team is going to get him rest ahead of a very important stretch of their schedule, especially heading into the NBA Cup knockout rounds.
After Tuesday's game in Denver, Green's next chance to play, assuming he is officially ruled out, will be on Thursday against the Houston Rockets.
