"His career was on the line" - Steve Kerr shouts out Draymond Green for polishing his conduct following suspension
The Golden State Warriors have been having a mediocre season, and they also have to tame a wild bull in Draymond Green. His antics against Phoenix Suns' center Jusuf Nurkic and Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert are still on fans' minds. Coach Steve Kerr lauds that the former Michigan State Spartan has been doing well in keeping his behavior in check.
Since his suspension, Green has only missed one game, and that was against the Dallas Mavericks on March 13 due to a back issue. Other than that, there has been no counts of delinquency from the former NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
Having Green available in the Warriors game has been a luxury for Coach Steve Kerr as they still battle it out for the best playoff position by the end of the regular season.
For Kerr, Draymond Green bit a bullet with the suspension. And the Warriors big man followed thorough with some personal changes that the league wanted to see.
"I'm so proud of Draymond for the way he's come through that suspension," said Kerr, reflecting on what Green went through. "I really think his career was on the line . . . It was clear that the league wanted real change and we all did."
Steve Kerr also impressed how Draymond Green got back to good condition after missing so many games
More than the suspension, Coach Steve Kerr was curious if Draymond Green was still in good shape and could catch up with the team after missing so many games. But so far so good for the four-time NBA All-Star as Kerr sees that he managed to still be a factor for the team.
"Draymond is one of the smartest and emotional people I've ever met, and he's done it. He has figured it out. He has been extremely competitive and an amazing leader and mentor for his younger teammates and he's help us win a bunch of games and he has walked the line perfectly," commends Kerr.
In 21 of the last 22 games of the Warriors since Green came off the suspension, he has been giving the team averages of 8.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks. Draymond Green is also shooting well from the field at 51% and has a high three-point percentage at 46.3%.
The Golden State Warriors, as of this writing, carry a 36-33 record and are placed 10th in the NBA Western Conference standings. They are positioned to be the last team in the Play-In Tournament and trail the Los Angeles Lakers by only 1.5 games.