Draymond Green finally showed up in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. After going ghost for the first 3 games, due to ‘back spasms’ and confidence issues, Draymond put up 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists. A Draymond type stat sheet. The Warriors have now tied the series 2-2, and they will head to Golden State to try to take the series lead in the NBA Finals on Sunday in Game 5. Dray credits his gain of confidence to a couple of things.
According to Dan Feldman of ProBasketballTalk:
“I know the amount of work I’ve put in over my life, over the course of the summers, this year. But I just wasn’t feeling confident at all. And I knew coming into this game, I had to be more confident.
We actually had a day off yesterday, and Coach Kerr gave us 30 minutes to shoot if you wanted to shoot. And I took an hour. And I wasn’t leaving this gym until I felt comfortable. And I shot a lot of pull-ups, mid-range jump shots, floaters and 3s. And I just shot until I felt comfortable, and I was able to come out with more confidence.
You can say you’re going to come out more confident, but if you don’t put the work in, it’s hard to come out more confident.”
He continued to say that it wasn’t only shoot around, but his family helped him too. His family motivated him to get his head into the game and not worry about the refs
You noticed that?
“My mom and my grandma told me I’m crying too much. Leave the officials alone and just play. They got you out there looking like you’re a punk and don’t know how to play basketball.
And then you sit back and watch, that’s what I was doing. The fact that you asked me that question even further lets me know that that’s what I was doing.
So, I just told myself, I’m going to come out and play and whatever happens, happens. Don’t argue the call. It’s not getting overturned, so why continue to argue and waste energy on that? I’ve got to waste, expend enough energy dealing with these guys. Don’t really have time to try to argue with the officials and all that stuff.”
Green went on to mention that if he played his usual level, the Warriors would be up 3-0 in the series. I find that hard to believe, but any of the teams could have taken the first 3 games. They were so close throughout the first 3 games that any game could have gone either way. Now it’s another story. You are playing a best-of-3 competition for an NBA championship. Game 4 on Sunday.
