Draymond Green has a hot take that isn’t all that hot.
He thinks that he is one of the best players in the NBA, per ESPN.com’s Chris Haynes:
“I think I’m one of the best players in the NBA,” Green said to ESPN. “Am I going to go out and score 30 every night? Absolutely not. But I didn’t say I was one of the best scorers. I think I’m one of the best players, and I think anybody should believe that. I think if you don’t believe that, you’re failing yourself, and you’re not allowing yourself to be that … But I don’t say that in a sense of, ‘Oh, I’m one of the best. I’m better than Steph, I’m better than KD.’ Like, that isn’t me. When I just look at the game, that’s how I feel.
Green isn’t wrong. Even now, as he struggles to find his identity beside Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, it remains clear how good he can be.
Few players throughout NBA history have melded his defensive versatility and playmaking ability. He is an undersized center who can also function like a point guard, and he has improved his three-point shot a great deal since entering the league.
Now, is Green the kind of player you would build around, from scratch or close to scratch? That’s up for debate. Some believe he is a product of the Golden State Warriors’ once-in-a-lifetime talent assembly and system. Others, though, see him as one of the main reasons, if not the foremost reason, why the Warriors are able to play the way they do, with a “Death Squad” lineup that features five shooters, and that doesn’t, usually, sacrifice anything on the defensive end.
And for the record, it’s those people who are right.
