DENVER — Draymond Green is officially listed as questionable, but Steve Kerr considers him doubtful to play on Tuesday night against the Nuggets, priming the defensive ace to miss his first game of the season.
Green, 34, is dealing with tightness in his left calf. His likely absence against the Nuggets, in the Warriors’ final NBA Cup group stage game, will stunt the team’s pending rotation changes and complicate their game plan against MVP favorite Nikola Jokic.
“He’s been amazing every day, engaged at practice, working with Rick (Celebrini) in the training room, the weight room,” head coach Steve Kerr said at the Warriors’ practice at the Ball Arena. “He’s got himself in really good shape…Doubtful tomorrow, we’ll see how he holds up. This is what it’s going to be with our team at this point in Draymond and Steph’s respective careers. Got to try to keep their minutes down the best we can, try to keep them healthy by being proactive. If they’re dealing with nagging injuries, like Steph’s knees last week and like Draymond’s calf now, we’ve got to manage it all.”
Green has been the biggest reason for the Warriors’ defense, which is tied for fourth in defensive rating. They have made that end of their court their identity, and it helped them to their current 12-7 record.
While averaging 8.8 points, 6.0 assists and 6.2 rebounds per game, Green has also shot a career-best 40.3% on 3s. He has also avoided serious trouble after his on-court behavior last year caused significant turbulence.
“Draymond’s been fantastic,” Kerr said. “This is all part of it, especially as guys get a little older.”
Green is playing 28.5 minutes per game, similar to Curry — who has missed four games due to injuries.
“We plan for him to play 32 minutes every game,” Kerr said. “I’d like to keep that pretty consistent, and I think that makes the most sense long-term. I know everybody cheering for us wants us to play him more. But I’ve always had the big picture in mind. Including the COVID season — I think I said something about chasing wins that got me in trouble. But look, I had Steph’s career in mind back then. We are in the business of keeping Steph Curry healthy long-term.”
The team’s conscientious handling of Curry has worked. Golden State wasn’t going anywhere in the COVID year Kerr mentioned, then they won the title two years later with Curry staying on the court for much of the season.
The Warriors will similarly manage Green — who only plays intense minutes and often has to play physical minutes at center — with care.
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Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment