Kendra AndrewsESPN5 minutes to read
Draymond, Ingram receives the techs after the chippy series between the Pels-Warriors
Draymond Green and Brandon Ingram both received technical fouls after a tight stretch between the Pelicans and Warriors.
In the midst of a disappointing first half in a contest that had a significant impact on the playoff race, the Warriors lacked energy and focus. They’ve committed to 14 turnovers up to that point. They couldn’t slow down the city of New Orleans. They were down by 19 points.
So Green set fire.
“Draymond wanted us to win tonight,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after their 120-109 win. “Just the intensity, the frustration early on with the way we were playing. The madness of the world, the yelling at everybody — bench, bench, me — and honestly, we deserve it.”
Green’s first spark came with 3:45 remaining in the second quarter when he committed his 17th technical foul.
After Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram drove from the perimeter toward the basket, Green appeared to lower his shoulder and push Ingram. As Ingram made his way from the baseline to the court, he approached Green and the two exchanged words, leading to some scrambling.
T’s were issued, and Green was also rated glaringly wrong 1 for the package.
Green will be fined $5,000 if the technical fault is not cleared within the next 24 hours – which Green believes should happen. But even if that wasn’t the case, he said it was worth it.
“It was excellent. Perfectly executed,” said Green. “It looked like we were dead for the first 18 minutes. We had to find some energy somewhere. It wasn’t just going to come, especially after losing the game like we did the last game; it could continue. I felt like it was happening. I knew we had to.” We do something and we do it quickly before the game gets out of control.”
About 20 seconds later, Green almost committed another technical foul after clashing with Herbert Jones. As Green was driving to throw the ball, he collided with Jones and landed on top of him. The two intertwined before being separated.
More scrambling from several players ensued before the scrum was broken up by the umpires and team security. After a long video review, I.T.
“I have to play as hard as I try to play every time I step onto the court,” said Green. “I can’t worry about that. For me, if I’m going to change my intensity level, why would I be there?”
Green often says things to motivate his teammates to move forward. He said he believed his teammates had his back until a scuffle with Jordan Paul earlier this season caused his suspicions.
“The moment I’m going to put myself like this, you hope the guys will support me,” said Green. “If not, our season is over anyway.”
After Green’s confrontation with Jones, Stephen Curry engaged in a scrum, yelling at Pelicans players and throwing a few crunches.
“He knows the guys have his back,” Carey said. “I am sure [Green] He wouldn’t go out to an island like this if he didn’t have that confidence. … There are times when I’ve had to keep him in check and bring him back when he turns in the wrong direction in the sense of just staying focused on winning.”
The Warriors fell back by as much as 20 points – 17 in the first half. But they outscored the Pelicans 74-46 in the second half, including shooting 70% on their way to their second-biggest comeback of the season.
Curry scored 22 of his 38 points in the second half. Scored or assisted on 58 of the Warriors’ 120 points (48%), including 37 of 74 (50%) in the second half.
He was the main source of the Warriors’ shot creations, going 8 of 14 from the ground off the dribble while teammates converted 8 of 11 shots from his passes.
When I raised him a little, [Curry] “Raise it another two notches,” Green said… We all jumped in line and followed him, and he locked up. Nobody stopped him. “
Tuesday’s match had a decisive energy, whether from the delicacy of the two teams, the atmosphere inside the Chase Center or the importance of the match for each team.
With the win, Golden State moved back into the sixth seed in the Western Conference with a half-game lead over the seventh-place Minnesota Timberwolves.
But every game remaining in the regular season will have a post-season atmosphere and pressure on it.
“It feels like we’ve been in a playoff for two weeks now,” Curry said. “The only difference is that you play with a different team every night. But that’s the same kind of adrenaline rush we get. Every game counts.”