Draymond Green is not healthy.
Doris Burke of ESPN reported early on in the Golden State Warriors’ Game 3 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers that Draymond Green was battling through back pain. And though he was healthy enough to play—even telling Burke he would be fine and good to go—he didn’t sound like someone who was good to go after Golden State’s 96-91 letdown.
From Comcast’s Rosalyn Gold-Onwude:
Draymond Green shared w/ me his back "is locked up at all times- pain w/ explosion, jumping & contact". Hurt it Game 2, 3rd qtr after fall.
— Ros Gold-Onwude (@ROSGO21) June 10, 2015
Draymond Green in regards to major back pain: at the end of the day everyone's banged up, gotta grind out, it's the Finals.
— Ros Gold-Onwude (@ROSGO21) June 10, 2015
Indeed, Green has no choice but to play through the pain at this point. There are no more than four games left in the Warriors’ season, and he is still their most valuable defender. They cannot afford to rest him, not when they’re being thoroughly outclassed by a Cavaliers team that is navigating a multitude of injuries themselves.
At the same time, Green isn’t exactly helping the Warriors right now. His play is being visibly impacted by that sore back. He doesn’t seem to be moving as freely, and while his defense was OK in Game 3, he was a non-entity on the offensive end, going 2-of-10 from the floor and totaling just four points. He also tied Harrison Barnes for the worst plus/minus (-14) of any Warriors player.
A team as good as Golden State should be able to account for Green’s injury, even if he can only provide the bare minimum on both offense and defense. But the Cavaliers are playing on a different level thus far, one in which they’re defending like hell and attacking the Warriors’ defensive vulnerabilities, be it an impeded Green or turnstile-esque David Lee.
Truth told, even with Green playing poorly, this series is unfolding in inexplicable fashion. The Cavaliers shouldn’t even be in this, let alone holding the series lead, without both Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving. Matthew Dellavedova, an undrafted sophomore out of Australia, shouldn’t be the second-most important player on a team that’s only two victories from nabbing its first NBA title ever.
Nothing that has happened thus far makes sense.
All the more reason, then, that the Warriors need Green.
Back injuries are tricky and can linger. More likely than not, Green’s pain won’t subside over the next two games, or even the course of the series. He’ll have to play hurt.
The Warriors can only hope that’s enough.
