Whether you admit it or not, Dream Green is one of the warriors' most important cornerstones to ignore. The Warriors have lost five of their last eight games, in large part because of Green's absence. The Warriors who thought Thompson would usher in a qualitative change. Who would have thought that Thompson's performance in his first game after his comeback would be highlighted, and his performance after that could only be described by the word "bland". And recently Curry's state has also declined to a certain extent. How important is Green to the Warriors?
On the defensive end, Green propped up the Warriors' defensive system. Green is 2.01m tall and weighs 104kg. Because it often appears in the No. 5 position, it is a typical short and stout center. Green has won player of the year, and the biggest feature is that he can defend from the 1st position to the 5th position. Green's movement speed is not very fast, but he is cunning and knows how to judge the situation. When defending top forwards, Green will sometimes press the ball carrier and sometimes give the ball carrier a certain amount of shooting space. While disrupting the rhythm of the opponent's attack, it will also find opportunities to cut the ball in the opponent's hand.
Defending the top center, if you feel soft, Green will try his best not to let you catch the ball in the shooting area, using a dog skin plaster defensive frenzy to consume your physical strength, thus affecting your shooting percentage. As for defending the centers who didn't shoot, Green relied on his strong down game to hold the opponent firmly, not giving the ball carrier a chance to get close to the basket. Whether it's guarding the basket or assisting in a misplaced defense, Green can do a good job of limiting the opponent's scores. Once Green is off the field, the Warriors' defense can't be as airtight as before. Of course, no matter what type of player you are defending, the small movements in Green's hands have never stopped.
On the offensive end, Green is the Warriors' commander-in-chief. The Warriors were able to build their all-time best record of 73 wins and 9 losses on offense because they had two historic three-point shooters and excellent passing ability. Because basketball itself is a sport to see who scores the most goals, we will attribute the Success of the Warriors to Curry and Thompson's huge restraint on the court. As everyone knows, the real rise of the Warriors began when Kerr replaced Green with the starter.
The Warriors on the offensive end are based on "blocking and demolition as the main + empty cut as a supplement + non-stop passing the ball". The Splash Brothers' three-pointers are certainly exploding, but without a ghostly passer like Green, the space created by the Splash Brothers after attracting the bag clip may not be converted into points. Green is the general initiator of the Warriors' half-time landing game, he plays the role of a dealer on the court, and can also be said to be the offensive axis of the entire Warriors.
The Warriors can use: the splash brothers' outside shooting pulling power, coupled with Green's ability to cover, cut in, and handle the ball reasonably, play a variety of offensive methods. Once all three play at the same time, the Warriors' scoring efficiency will become extremely high. This is a complete set of offensive systems that the Warriors have tried and failed. Why are the Blazers always not far away from the playoffs? It is because Lillard and Mikelum do not have such a good second setter as Dream Green around them, and they lack a half-court attacking stopover. That's the main reason why the Trail Blazers have always been interested in Green.
Of course, Green's shortcomings are also obvious, that is, the shooting is extremely unstable. So far in his career, Green's three-point shooting rate is 30.1%, and with such an outside shooting rate, Green can't open up space for the team. As long as Green holds the ball outside the three-point line, the defender will choose to let him shrink under the basket. That's why when we watch the Warriors game, we always look at the situation on the court to 4 to 5.
Green is a system player who relies heavily on superstars. Although Green can often get a triple-double in the game, if there is no Curry and Thompson around, his stats will seriously decline, and leading the team to win has become a big problem. Sometimes Green also risks passing the ball too often because he is too data-seeking, resulting in an increase in the turnover rate. Green's 3.12 turnovers per game this season are a good example.
Even so, Green is still an indispensable role for both ends of the Warriors' offense and defense. So far this season, Green has averaged 7.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 1.38 steals and 1.21 blocks per game. Without his game, the team will even have a situation where there are more losses than wins. Without Green, the Warriors are not only missing lubricant on the court, but also a locker room leader who regularly encourages teammates. It is said that there is no splash, not a warrior. But if splash leaves Green, the Warriors' overall offense is no longer so smooth.
Green was drafted into the NBA by the Warriors in 2012 with the 35th pick in the second round. Because of Bogut's presence, Green has been playing a substitute role in the team. He is like a stream that flows into the sea in the team, "dispensable". It wasn't until he received a teammate's pass 0.9 seconds before the final game to catch a layup and kill his opponent that the coach included him in the ranks of key players. With playing time guaranteed, Green had 20 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals against the Timberwolves. And Green's ability to guide the ball is gradually showing in the team. In the 15-16 season, Green averaged 13.9 points, 9.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game. It was also that year that the Warriors broke the Bulls' regular season record and set the best record in the history of the regular season of 73 wins and 9 losses.
That year's Finals Warriors were reversed by the Cavaliers with a 3-1 lead. So in the offseason, the Warriors all went crazy to Durant. Green nearly blew up Durant's phone and used his three-inch tongue to persuade Durant to join the Warriors. After Durant joined the Warriors, Green focused more on defense. That year, the Warriors finished first in the league with 67 wins and 15 losses. Green also won defender of the year with an outstanding statistic of 10.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals and 1.4 blocks per game. After that, the Warriors successfully won two consecutive championships and formed a death five-small group that made the whole league tremble.
There can be no lack of tears in a normal story. Just when people were eagerly looking forward to the Warriors to win a three-game championship, the Warriors suffered a wide range of injuries in 19 years, so they missed the opportunity to win the three consecutive championships. Then Durant joined the Nets, and the Warriors returned to the time of the Splash Brothers. With Thompson's comeback, the Warriors aligned the combination of Curry + Thompson + Green. It's just that green's brief recovery hasn't been used heavily this season. Once Green returns, the warriors we are familiar with will once again come into our eyes.
Years later, when people mention the Warriors again, they will surely be amazed by the three points of the Splash Brothers. But don't forget, behind Curry and Thompson, there's a player named Dream Green who has been escorting them!