Warriors' Draymond Green, James Wiseman 'Very Unlikely' to Play in Preseason

The Golden State Warriors will likely be without Draymond Green and rookie James Wiseman for the entirety of the preseason.

Head coach Steve Kerr told reporters as much Thursday, calling it "very unlikely" either of them will play in the team's three preseason games.

"Neither one will play Saturday and very unlikely to play either game in Sacramento, too," Kerr said of the opener against the Denver Nuggets and then the other two games on Tuesday and Thursday. "We've got to be very careful and smart given the layoff that we're all coming off of and then the short amount of time as it is for training camp. There's no way I'd throw either guy into an NBA game right away. They got to build into that."

Nick Friedell of ESPN explained they are the only two players who have not practiced after general manager Bob Myers revealed two players in the organization tested positive for COVID-19.

The preseason is far less important for Green.

The 30-year-old has won three championships and built an impressive resume while anchoring the Warriors' small-ball lineups. The Michigan State product is a two-time All-NBA selection, five-time All-Defensive selection and three-time All-Star who won the 2017 Defensive Player of the Year.

Green figures to be ready to step into the lineup when he is good to go physically and play his typical key role.

Wiseman, on the other hand, could use the experience that the preseason provides. Golden State selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 draft, and he figures to play significant minutes for a team looking to bounce back from a disappointing campaign.

"It just pushes everything back," Kerr said of the 19-year-old's development. "It's unfortunate because these are very important practices this week, so the only thing we've been able to do is have him sit and watch practice. And then watch film, both with the team and individually and be tutored off the court, but as soon as he's on the court, we'll do as much as we can with him to get him up to speed."

Both players will be even more important to the Warriors' success since Klay Thompson will miss the season with a torn Achilles.