“I would take Draymond Green’s career over Carmelo Anthony or Russell Westbrook… I’d take it over James Harden” - Colin Cowherd on Draymond Green’s value to the Warriors, says he’s Rodman-esque
Draymond Green received praise in Tuesday’s episode of “The Herd” with Colin Cowherd. After years of understanding his role and playing to it reliably and effectively, Green has proved how much of an asset he is on the floor.
During the episode, Colin expressed why he believes Draymond is so valuable, in fact even more valuable than some big offensive superstars.
Cowherd shares his opinion:
“I would take Draymond Green’s career over Carmelo Anthony, or Russell Westbrook … I’d take it over James Harden.”
Don't take Draymond Green for granted:
"I would take his career over Carmelo Anthony or Russell Westbrook and I think I'd take it over James Harden." — @ColinCowherd https://t.co/xlm3mKQbMC
Draymond Green has always been known to be an effective force on the floor. But placing him above greats like Carmelo, Westbrook, or even Harden, may raise a few eyebrows.
One must remember just how offensively dominant Melo, Russ, and Harden can be. However, we must also remember that Draymond is the only NBA champion on the list, having won three NBA Championships with his Warriors squad.
Now let’s take a quick look at the stat comparison.
Draymond Green holds career averages of 8.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game across 685 appearances.
James Harden has averaged 24.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game across 942 appearances.
Carmelo Anthony has averaged 22.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game across 1260 appearances.
And finally, Russell Westbrook holds career averages of 22.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 8.4 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game across 1021 appearances.
When one looks at the stats as they are laid out, it seems hard to objectively pick Draymond Green. But the point that Colin Cowherd is making about the Warriors power forward is that Green plays to his role more effectively than any player listed. His three rings speak for themselves. Though he had teammates like Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and even Kevin Durant for a while, Draymond is still credited for the success in Golden State.
The attitude that Draymond Green holds on the floor as well as his insurmountable basketball IQ that provides is invaluable. It offers much more to a team he's on when comparing to players like Russ, Melo, or Harden. Though the trio all averages above 20 points-per-game, they have yet to make their footprint in the NBA Finals. That creates an advantage in Draymond’s favor.
Regardless of the offensive output from the noted trio, Draymond Green’s ability to not take the shot is just as admirable. When you are playing with shooting legends, there stands literally zero reason to shoot the ball. Draymond’s ability to remove himself from higher career stats in order to play the supporting role he needs to is where his greatness lies.
This is what Cowherd refers to as Draymond Green being, “Rodman-esque”. Dennis Rodman is noted as easily one of the most impactful players in NBA history and was notably shy on the shooting end.
Rodman played 911 games in the NBA and averaged 7.3 points, 13.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.6 blocks her game. He is credited by many as the best offensive rebounder in NBA history. He earned the NBA All-Defensive First Team honors seven times and won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award twice. He also led the NBA in rebounds-per-game for a record seven consecutive years and won five NBA championships.
Rodman was traded to the Bulls in 1995, at 34-years-old, and many considered it to be a huge gamble. Yet the power forward quickly adapted to his new environment. Under coach Phil Jackson, he averaged 5.5 points and 14.9 rebounds per game, winning yet another rebounding title. He was part of the great Bulls team that won 72 of 82 regular season games, an NBA record at the time.
Dennis Rodman’s ability to join a team with a scoring champion like Michael Jordan and not affect the flow of offense was one standing benefit. The others were Rodman’s ability to tighten up the defense and create many more opportunities on offence.
Rodman’s ability to create a turnover or get the ball back on an offensive rebound and not hog the play into his own shot creation is something many players cannot do. There is always that competitive drive when you create something, where you need to be the one to finish it.
Draymond Green proves to be much like Rodman in the sense that he feels no need to be the one to finish it. He is happy to play in his position, creating more opportunities and seamless transitions to accent the already great shooters that he shares the floor with. Cowherd’s pick of Draymond over Harden, Russ, or Melo, stands tall.