Draymond Green left the Golden State Warriors' game last night vs. the Washington Wizards with calf tightness, and with the exact timetable for his return uncertain, Steve Kerr is likely turning to one of his young players to fill in for Green.
After Saturday's 122-114 win over Washington, Kerr indicated Moses Moody would be the guy to step up as long as Green is unavailable.
“If Draymond is out for a little bit, this is a good chance for Moses to get a lot of minutes at that four spot,” Kerr said [h/t The Athletic's Anthony Slater].
Moody played his second-most minutes of any game this season, and he made the most of his opportunity. In 29 minutes, Moody recorded 13 points as a +12.
This season, Moody's minutes have been sporadic; he averaged 15.6 minutes through the first 23 games of the season before missing a few weeks with knee tendinitis. Over the last three weeks, though, Kerr has seemed less hesitant to give Moody playing time, which notably increased to 19.7 minutes in that timeframe. Additionally, he has logged four of his seven highest minute totals this season since Jan. 7.
Still, missing Green for any length of time will be tough for the Warriors. Green, who will undergo an MRI on his left calf today, is the defensive heart and soul of Golden State, as well as one of the team's most vocal leaders. Without Green, there's no telling how the Warriors will fare, especially considering the team hasn't fared incredibly well with him.
Since starting the season 12-3, the Warriors are 9-17 and have sunk to a three-way tie for ninth in the Western Conference. Any slip-ups could very well lead to the Sacramento Kings and Phoenix Suns, who Golden State is tied with in the standings, to build a bit of a cushion between them and the Warriors. Also, the San Antonio Spurs are just 1.5 games back from the trio of teams, putting Golden State in serious jeopardy of falling to 12th in the West.
It has been expected that the Warriors would make another trade before the deadline — they previously acquired Dennis Schroder from the Brooklyn Nets — to bolster a team that has floundered over the past two months.
The Warriors have proven inefficient — they are 24th in the league in true shooting and have the ninth-highest turnover percentage — and appear to need major help for Stephen Curry, who while not saying he wants to be traded, has indicated both vaguely and clearly that he wants to be on a winning team.