Account
Draymond Green: 'Wouldn't Be Able to Live With' Warriors Not Matching Celtics 'Force'
June 7, 2022
Draymond Green isn't going to let a lack of physicality be the reason the Golden State Warriors lose to the Boston Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals.
Speaking with reporters ahead of Game 3 in Boston, Green said he "wouldn't be able to live with" the Warriors not matching Boston's physicality throughout the remainder of the Finals.
"I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I'm going on about my summer and we lost the NBA Finals because we couldn't meet force with force," Green said. "So I think that was just kind of it for me, and understanding that, like I said, that is my department. That's where I'm supposed to lead, and I can't let my guys down."
The Celtics defeated the Warriors 120-108 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals and were the much more physical team, experiencing little pushback from the Dubs. In Game 2, the energy shifted as Golden State defeated Boston 107-88 to even the series.
Green and the Warriors were much more physical in Game 2, making sure the Celtics knew they were here to battle from the get-go. On the first possession of the game, Green got tangled up with Al Horford and forced a jump ball. He later received a technical foul of his own before getting into an altercation with Jaylen Brown.
Green's altercation with Brown was reviewed for a second technical foul, but no foul was called on the play and the Warriors veteran remained in the game. Despite nearly being booted from Game 2, Steve Kerr told reporters that he wants Green to keep up the intensity moving forward.
"No, just let him be him," Kerr said. "He's at his best when he's passionate and emotional. I thought he played a great game the other night. He got the early tech, but he left the officials alone all night.
"The play is always going to be physical in the playoffs. Being physical is part of it. So the main thing is you have to leave the officials alone, and Draymond did a good job of that."
The Warriors and Celtics will only continue to exchange blows in one of the more physical Finals of recent memory, and Marcus Smart told reporters that Boston plans to respond with just as much physicality in Game 3.
"I mean, you respond to fire with fire, right?" Smart said. "We've just got to turn around and do the same thing. If he's going to come in here and try to be physical, this is our house and we've got to protect it."
This series is only just beginning to heat up, and we could be in for a good one when the Celtics host the Warriors at TD Garden on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.