SACRAMENTO – Malik Monk’s second free throw cut the Sacramento Kings’ deficit to one point with the remaining four minutes of Wednesday night in the Golden 1. Once the Warriors got the ball, Draymond Green tapped a player no one could compare to.
Some have compared him to Dennis Rodman. Others did the same with Green and Charles Barclay. His unique skill set combines his size, defensive acumen and outspoken determination against the comparisons.
So, here’s a new one.
“Draymond was amazing,” said Steve Kerr. “Especially down the stretch. They’d call him ‘Draymond Nowitzki’ after the fade.”
Kevon Looney later joked that Steph Curry was the first to call Green while the Warriors were celebrating in the locker room.
Green’s vanishing one-legged jumper with less than four minutes left gave the Warriors a three-point lead. They never looked back, winning 123-116, and extending the Warriors’ NBA record of 28 consecutive playoff streaks with at least one win on the road. The Game 5 win on Wednesday night gave Golden State three straight wins and a three-games-to-two lead in the first round as the series returned to San Francisco for Game 6 on Friday night.
Back off the bench for the second consecutive game after being suspended, Green played 32 minutes. There is a strong argument that he was the most influential player on the ground. Draymond dropped a season-high 21 points on 8-of-10, adding seven assists, four rebounds, four steals and one block.
He was a plus/minus 12 in plus/minus, swaying every inch of the field behind the nonstop boos from Kings fans. Green became just the third player in NBA history with at least 21 points, seven assists, four rebounds, and four rebounds off the bench in a playoff game since 1974.
His best impression of Dirk Nowitzki was the product of two final points, marking the most points Green had scored in a playoff game since the 2017 Western Conference Semifinals. But this was also his second straight game so aggressive on offense.
In Sunday’s Game 4 win, Green took 14 shots – the second most by him all season. He only made three. By his stats, he has missed six kicks and vowed that would be a quick changeup in Game 5. And Draymond kept his word.
“Tonight going into the game I just knew where my points were going to be and that’s one of the luxuries that will come off the bench,” said Green. “You can kind of get a feel for the game, and see what’s going on.”
The Warriors were down by two points, 16-14, when Green first entered the game at the 6:34 mark of the first quarter. Twenty-two seconds later, he nailed a five-foot buoy. He made two more shots in the first quarter, both of which were layups.
Over the past few days, Green has been working in the gym on precision plays that have worked in his favor and seen him collect a rare number of points. The action turned out to be a decisive win.
And it wasn’t limited to one side either.
The fourth quarter was Daron Fox’s time to shine all season. The Kings star was named the NBA’s Clutch Player of the Year before hinting. Fox disposed of a broken left finger, and scored 29 points with nine assists and seven rebounds.
But in the fourth quarter of Game 5, played all 12 minutes, Fox held scoreless as he went from the field to 0 of 6. Green played eight minutes of the fourth quarter and was his usual offensive tackle defensively with three steals, two rebounds and one block.
The 33-year-old was the No. 1 sprint going down Golden 1. He came away winning to the tune of a silent Sacramento crowd.
“I didn’t give any of my energy to them,” Green said of the Kings fans. “Anything other than winning this basketball, I wanted to focus all my energy on that. So I noticed it a few times, but for the majority of the game, I didn’t even hear them.
“I have just been approached with the task at hand.”
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The 21 points. The 32 minutes of imposing his will and grinding his opponent. Everything Green has done is exactly why the Warriors have stayed with him through the ups and downs of more than a decade.
The Highs were the pinnacle of basketball. His four rings, which he can flash at any moment, are proof. Bottoms, as we’ve seen more than once this season, can make everyone shake their heads from top to bottom and ask if this is the last straw.
Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. There is one Draymond Green, of which he is terribly proud. This could be a mistake or a superpower. The Warriors are now one victory away from continuing their title defense, thanks to the latter.
“He’s emotional and sometimes he crosses a line, as he readily admits,” Kerr said. “But at the core, it all comes from a place of competitive desire. He just wants to win. He just wants to compete and win.”
Both boxes are checked, beyond a reminder of what makes Green incomparable.