How Draymond Green Evolved into an Elite NBA Defender

Measuring progress, or even success, is difficult on the defensive end of the floor. 

Outside of pure one-on-one, isolation defense, it's difficult to judge performance without knowing the schematics behind what a player's team is doing.

Sometimes bigs are asked to defend ball-handlers in the pick-and-roll far away from the basket. Other times, they hang back and wait for penetration. Some teams have their guards shade offensive players toward the baseline, which can sometimes result in slight penetration. Other teams play chest-to-chest, meaning they're trying to eliminate any dribble drives. 

Assigning blame is a tricky business. But if there's one signifier of a great defensive player, it's in his ability to fulfill multiple roles. This isn't just about guarding multiple positions; it's about guarding multiple areas of the floor, each with its own technique and responsibilities. 

Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors is slowly mastering this art. This season, he's already earning some nods for Defensive Player of the Year. For a player that was once considered a "tweener" who didn't have a specific position to defend, it's a remarkable achievement. 

Green himself has always used this label—and more importantly, the lack of belief in his defensive skills—as a motivator to dominate on that end of the floor (via Ethan Sherwood Strauss of ESPN.com): "They said I fell in the draft because, 'What position would I guard?' I'll never forget that.'"

Green walked into the league at the right time from an offensive standpoint, as positional versatility is a crucial component of staying power in today's NBA. He's a hair under 6'6" without shoes, but his 230-pound frame doesn't exactly scream wing player. 

Sizewise, he's an undersized power forward. Offensively, he can drill opposing guards with hard screens while popping for three-pointers or banging for offensive rebounds.

He was supposed to struggle defensively, but he has thrived this season. The tweener status that was supposed to hamper his career as a defender has actually unleashed a different weapon.

Because he's thick enough to muscle with power forwards on the block, opponents can't take advantage of him. What he gives up in inches he more than makes up for in power. 

Notice here when Paul Millsap of the Atlanta Hawks posts up Green, he can't gain any ground with a left-handed power dribble. Millsap actually bounces off him somewhat, leading to a fall-away 16-footer. 

If you listen toward the end of the clip, you can hear the Hawks color commentator mentioning that he would let Millsap isolate here to attack a smaller player. 

Golden State counts on this way of thinking. Green isn't the perfect fit for a particular position, but he's a solid matchup everywhere. It's a slight mismatch at most. Opponents, therefore, break their offensive flow to explore a matchup that barely favors them, if at all.

This has been particularly true of Green's work in the post this season. Opponents are shooting 40.2 percent in the post against him, according to Synergy Sports, a number that puts him in the 92nd percentile in the entire league. 

What's even more impressive is that it has come on 107 field-goal attempts. Teams continue to drop the ball down low to their bigs against Green, and six out of 10 times, they walk away with nothing. And that doesn't include all the possessions in which Green forces a kick out because the offensive big can't get a shot. 

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Perimeter defense is a bit dicier for Green. To put it simply, he's not very quick. But what he has is an adept understanding of his length and how to compensate against speedier guards. 

Isolation defense is often a game of cat and mouse. Each player sizes the other up and tries to feel for weaknesses. Most times the defender is being reactionary, idling on his heels and waiting to adjust to the offensive player.

Green does an excellent job turning the tables by constantly stunting at the ball-handler. He's not actually going for the steal: He's just occasionally jumping out at him to cause a back dribble or to make the offensive player uncomfortable.

The result of this excess duress can be poor decision-making. To relieve the pressure, the ball-handler will often execute a quick step-back move to create space and regain control of the encounter.

This plays right into Green's hands. Although the occasional stab can be a risky move against strong drivers, Green has an excellent feel for when to go for it and when to hang back. And when he does jolt out at the ball, he always backs off immediately. 

This is part of his compensation package: the dance between playing the man honestly and goading him into settling for a pull-up jumper.

Keeping all this in mind, take a look at this one-on-one battle between James Harden of the Houston Rockets and Green. After Green gets switched onto him in a late-clock situation, Harden takes a few standstill dribbles to allow space to clear for his isolation.

Green notices he's standing straight up and not in a position to attack. Harden is clearly not ready to battle, so Green seizes the opportunity to pounce.

By the time things are once again settled, Harden is dribbling backward and with his off hand. Two stabs later and he is 30 feet from the rim and traveling the wrong way. 

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When Harden finally heads downhill, Green backs up considerably:

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Green is baiting him to take an outside shot here. He knows he doesn't stand much of a chance against one of the league's best drivers, so he's gambling on a contested outside shot. After one final reach at the ball, Harden steps back and obliges. The shot is well short.

Golden State's defensive style calls for lots of switching, and Green is one of the reasons why the Warriors have been the best defensive team all year. Very few players can reliably battle the point guard through center positions, but he can pull it off. 

According to Synergy Sports, Green's defensive field-goal percentage on switches off of pick-and-rolls is 30.2 percent. When switches occur in other man-to-man situations, it drops even further to 23.9 percent. Those numbers are good for the 68th and 92nd percentiles in the NBA, respectively. 

Does all of this qualify Green for Defensive Player of the Year? He should certainly be in the conversation, but perimeter players have a difficult time breaking through. The award is probably out of his reach, as he wasn't known as an elite defender before this season. 

However, there will be plenty of interest in him on the restricted free-agent market. Golden State will be in a tough spot this offseason. Green and his agent will definitely ask for a fat new contract, and the Warriors might have to oblige. Versatile wing defenders are few and far between, and it's almost guaranteed another team will throw a big offer sheet his way. 

But that surprise value is worth it in the short term for Golden State. Without Green, they're not the best team in the Western Conference and a championship contender. 

What's ironic about Green's development as a defender is that the critics ultimately were correct. What position does he guard? Not a single one—but every one. 

And that's where his value lies: He does everything well, but nothing spectacularly. 

A new version of the Renaissance man...at least on the defensive end of the basketball court.