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OAKLAND – Draymond Green looked upset. The Warriors’ forward offered the same look he has when he stares down an official who made a call he did not like. It became similar to the look Green has when he wants to intimidate a defender.
So what else got Green so riled up? Nothing other than a reporter asking him if he considers it important to win this year’s NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award.
“I need that,” Green said following the 131-121 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday at Oracle Arena. “I need that badly.”
How bad?
“Real bad,” Green said. “I made second team All-Defense last year. I’m pissed about that still. I’ll be pissed until I right that. So that’s a serious goal of mine this year. I’m on it every night.”
Green was certainly on it for the Warriors (8-1) in their win over the Pelicans (4-3).
He posted a near triple double with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting, 14 rebounds and eight badists. He played a large part in Pelicans center Anthony Davis finishing with 17 points on only 6-of-16 shooting. Green provided all the familiar intangibles that has made him a three-time NBA All-Star, a former Defensive Player of the Year (2016-17) and a member of the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team (2015-17).
“He was probably the best player on the floor,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
Those are telling words. After all, Warriors guard Stephen Curry scored a team-leading 37 points with his usual efficiency from the field (12-of-20) and the perimeter (7-of-11), marking his sixth 30-point of the game of the season. Kevin Durant added 24 points on a 10-of-17 clip along with eight badists. Klay Thompson kept his sharp shooting with 18 points on 7-of-17 shooting.
But the Warriors never judge Green’s value by the box score. They judge him by what he does on the court.
“I know other guys had some big point totals and all that. But this was not a very clean game for us,” Kerr said. “When the game gets a little grimy, that seems to be when Draymond’s at his best.”
What has helped Green play at his best during forgettable regular-season games in October?
“He didn’t change his name and he’s still Draymond Green, No. 23 for the Warriors,” Curry said, smiling. “You never worry about him finding a way to impact the game.”
What has helped Green play at his best after missing three preseason games because of a sore left knee?
“He’s Draymond Green. He’s an All-Star,” Durant said, smiling. “I don’t think missing preseason games did anything to him.”
Here’s the thing, though.
The Warriors have worried in the past about Green finding a way to impact a game. He admittedly lacked consistency last season. He acknowledged feeling disengaged after appearing in three consecutive NBA Finals. He acknowledged ailments limiting him, including a sore right shoulder (seven games), the flu (two) a sprained left index finger (one) and a pelvic contusion one). So after the Warriors still won the 2018 NBA title, Green spent his summer mostly resting his injured body and clearing his mind free of everything related to basketball.
“I needed that time off,” Green said. “Even more so physically, I needed it mentally. So I took quite a bit of time off and I got back into my groove.”
Then the Warriors worried about Green missing preseason games with a sore left knee. Kerr phased him back into the lineup on a minutes restriction. Kerr also monitored his fatigue level.
“The rhythm I did build with the time I used in the offseason I kind of lost with those two weeks in sitting,” Green said. “So the first few games for me were rough. It was frustrating.”
Green shed his rustiness in the Warriors’ second game. He then offered varying statistical performances, while still maintaining his intensity. And then against New Orleans, Green became the best version of himself.
“Draymond’s approach and his attitude all year has been fantastic,” Kerr said. “He’s such an emotional player and person that there have been times in his career where he had big swings of emotion from one game to the next. He’s been very consistent with his effort. He’s been able to play through some of the bad spells where in the past he may have gotten him down a little bit. That’s really important for our team. In a lot of ways, we’re only as good as Draymond is.”
And in that case, the Warriors were really good against the Pelicans.
With Thompson considering Green “one of the best pbading big man,” he played a large part in setting up 3-pointers for Curry, Thompson and Durant. After Green forced the Pelicans to a shot-clock violation with 3:09 left in the second quarter, he called for the Warriors fans to cheer louder. After he made a layup and drew a foul for a 70-63 lead with 22.4 seconds left in the second quarter, Green flexed his muscles to the crowd.
Green became indignant when officials award Pelicans forward Julius Randle two foul shots despite charging into him. But after Randle sank both to cut the Warriors’ lead to 111-98 with 9:34 left, Green spent the next three possessions making a 14-foot- turnaround jumper, finishing with a block and grabbing a rebound.
“You direct your energy toward different things,” Green said. “That’s been a point of emphasis for me this year not to waste off my energy arguing with the referees about the calls. It’s not going to change. So turn the page to the next play and try to make something else happen. I was able to do a little bit of that and keep the game in our favor.”
Durant believed Green has turned the game in the Warriors’ favor much earlier than that.
“The moment he wakes up on a game day, he’s displaying that energy and effort,” Durant said. “He doesn’t need a play like that to get him going. He’s that way from the start of the game. When he has that energy and is out there rebounding like he does and moving the ball like he did tonight, that takes us to the next level. I think he woke up this morning that way.”
Green proved Durant right. He has woken up every morning feeling that way, remembering the anger he felt on losing a defensive accolade last season. By next spring, Green wants that award back.
“I’m pissed,” Green said. “Second team all-defense? That’s disrespectful.”
The cheat codes have stayed activated. Curry posted his sixth 30-point game. He has made at least five 3-pointers in eight of the Warriors’ nine games. He has posted career-highs in points (33), shooting percentage (54.9 percent) and 3-point shooting (52.9). With those numbers, Curry is on pace to make an NBA record 500 3-pointers this season, which would break his output in 2015-16 (402).
Does Curry worry about keeping this up? He shook his head no.
“Just like the seasons where I’m in the high 30’s and I get that question about the 40 percent streak, I never get too high or low,” Curry said. “I’m going to keep shooting. Whatever it is at the end, I’ll tally it up. It’s about the perspective on every night I’m out there, I’m going to take the shots I feel like I can make and have confidence and make shots.”
Curry has plenty of reasons to feel confident. He is Curry, after all. But the Warriors have consistently noted his improved offseason routine. Kerr also credited Warriors consultant and Hall-of-Fame point guard Steve Nash and director of sports medicine Rick Celebrini. Warriors badistant coach Bruce Fraser, who works with Curry closely, also has remarked to Kerr that Curry appears more disciplined with his regimen.
“He’s at his peak in terms of knowing the leauge, knowing his opponents and understanding his body,” Kerr said. “Steph has taken another step. That’s why he is shooting the ball so well. When you’re stronger, your legs are there. You tend to shoot better.”
The Warriors have noticed, but they have become numb to it.
“When someone is that good, you expect them to do it every day,” Durant said. “You tend to take people for granted when they’ve been doing it for so long. I try not to do that. But I also don’t want to sit there and marvel at him.”
The highlight reels looked so perfect. Jerebko scored 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting. He threw a behind-the-back pbad to set up Durant for a transition dunk. Though Jerebko committed a turnover, he raced on the other end to block E’Twaun Moore.
Not a bad move for the Warriors to sign Jerebko to a one year, $2.1 million deal after the Utah Jazz placed him on the waiver wire.
“He’s exactly what I envisioned,” Curry said.
Yet, Jerebko did not exactly show what the Warriors envisioned.
He averaged 3.8 points on 31.8 percent shooting, 3.4 rebounds in only 14.8 minutes through five exhibition games. Jerebko also went scoreless in the Warriors’ season-opening win over the Thunder.
“He hit a wall. He was running in mud,” Kerr said. “It was more the physical toll of starting training camp and traveling and playing games. His last week of camp was not that impressive.”
Then Jerebko became impressive in the Warriors’ win over the Jazz, his former team. He made a game-winning putback, capping a 10-point effort on 4-of-5 shooting along with six rebounds. Through eight games, Jerebko has averaged 7.2 points while shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 47.8 percent from 3-point range along with 4.3 rebounds in 16.4 minutes off the bench.
“The game that really catapulted him was the Utah game,” Kerr said.
What changed after that?
“I don’t know if it changed things. I knew I would’ve kept doing the same thing even if that tip didn’t go in,” Jerebko said. “But it gave us that energy. We needed that win to have a great start to the season. Obviously it meant a lot to me to win that game.”
It has meant a lot to the Warriors that Jerebko has played so well. He has provided more reliable 3-point shooting so far than free-agent signees Nick Young (37.7) and Omri Cbadpi (45.5) provided. Jerebko entered training camp in “the best shape I ever came into,” which no one would have said last year about Young. And Jerebko has provided a defensive presence that David West and Zaza Pachulia offered last season. Kerr has since seen Jerebko becoming “a nice fit.”
“He’s very, very good player and very smart,” Green said. “He knows where to be and can shoot the ball. Most importantly he’s a competitor and he loves playing basketball.”
Jerebko has loved playing with the Warriors, both because of their talent and their open-system that allows him to move and improvise.
“I’ve been ready to play,” Jerebko said. “My teammates make it simple for me. It’s fun out there. That makes basketball a lot easier.”
The Warriors’ third-year center tried to stay calm. But then Warriors forward Andre Iguodala exposed his frustration.
“They got to stop calling fouls on you, man,” Iguodala shouted in the locker room.
Jones nodded his head in agreement. He had six points on 3-of-4 shooting in only 10 minutes because of three fouls. He logged only two minutes and 38 seconds in the first quarter before collecting two fouls. He then sat out and did not return until the second half.
“Today was actually kind of crazy,” Jones said. “I’m not going to talk about that subject.”
That’s because Jones does not want to get fined, even if he has some extra security after the Warriors exercised his team option for next season worth $2.3 million.
“You still have a game to play,” Jones said. “So you have to maintain focus and do the things you got to do. Try to keep your hands up.”
Jones’ foul trouble aside, the Warriors have become further impressed with his post presence, defense and effort.
“We may have picked it up anyway based off his potential. But it’s a no brainer. He’s a really good young talent,” Kerr said. “He’s gotten miles and miles better from where he was a year ago. He’s going to be a big part of our team going forward.”
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Livingston missed Wednesday’s game against New Orleans because of a sore right foot that has sidelined him for the previous two games.
Kerr said that Livingston took an MRI and that “everything was fine.” He added, though, the Warriors will be “very careful” both with Livingston and veteran forward Andre Iguodala over minor injuries.
“We want both guys to be fresh and ready to roll in the playoffs,” Kerr said. “We’ll be very careful throughout the regular season. If there is anything nagging, we’ll keep them on the bench.”
The longer McCaw remains absent, the more likely he will never wear a Warriors uniform again. Does it surprise Kerr that McCaw declined a two-year, $5.2 million offer despite showing mixed progress his first two seasons as a role player?
“Nothing really surprises me too much in the NBA,” Kerr said. “You just coach whoever is here and we were lucky to coach a great bunch. We’d love to have Patrick here, but the ball is really in his court.”
The Warriors celebrated Halloween by honoring Thompson, who set an NBA record 14 3-pointers on Monday in Chicago. Warriors spokesman wore Thompson’s Warriors jersey, along with his shoes and yellow headband he wore to cover up a gash. Meanwhile, Thompson arrived to Oracle Arena dressed as Jackie Moon, Will Ferrell’s character in Semi-Pro.
“I found it,” Thompson said. “Will sent it to me himself.”
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