Warriors' Draymond Green: I'm '1 of the Baddest Motherf--kers on the Planet'

Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green believes his competitive fire is what sets him apart from his NBA peers.

According to ESPN.com's Ramona Shelburne, Green feels that striking the right balance between passion and playing with a level head has plenty to do with his on-court performance as well: "It's all about, 'Is [the fire] working for me or is it working against me?' When I'm channeling it to work for me, I think I'm one of the baddest motherf--kers on the planet. When it gets the best of me, I'm not so good."

Although he posted a triple-double in Game 1 of the NBA Finals (10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists), he shot just 22.2 percent from the field in the loss. Green finished with 17 points, 10 boards and nine assists on 6-of-12 shooting in Golden State's 109-104 win in Game 2, which evened the series at 1-1.

Draymond Green with the Flush

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Perhaps most importantly, Green helped keep Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam in check after he went off for 32 points in Game 1. In Game 2, Siakam scored just 12 points on 5-of-18 shooting.

Green is a three-time All-Star and one-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year who is widely regarded as one of the league's best defensive players. His aggressiveness and competitiveness work to his advantage at times on that end of the floor, but they can also be combustible elements.

The do-it-all forward tied with teammate Kevin Durant and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook for the most technical fouls during the 2018-19 regular season with 16. He was also ejected once.

In 2017-18, Green was second in the NBA with 15 technical fouls and tied for second in ejections with three.

Controlling his on-court emotions has long been an issue for Green, and it infamously cost the Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals. Due to an accumulation of flagrant-foul points, Green was suspended for Game 5 of the 2016 Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Cavs went on to win the game and later the series.

Green leads the NBA with four techs during these playoffs, but he has seemingly kept his emotions in check better than usual, which is something Green partially credited to a diet he began in March:

"When I went on this diet, it's like a sense of control, and it's confidence because you feel like you're conquering something. You're defeating something every day.

"Having that control, it carries over to other areas in your life. We all love to eat. We all enjoy the things that we enjoy. If I can conquer that and not do that, why can't I conquer my emotions, too? Well, maybe I can f---ing conquer my emotions! Maybe I can conquer anything else! And so I think honestly that has really helped put me in a different state."

With Durant out due to a calf injury and Klay Thompson's status in question after he suffered a hamstring injury in Game 2, Green's on-court presence is more important than ever for Golden State.

The Warriors need Green to be the tenacious player who has helped bring them so much success over the years. His doing so in a controlled manner is important since Golden State can ill afford to lose another key player in the midst of a close NBA Finals.