In one of the easiest calls to take the Brooklyn Nets at (+22.5), the Golden State Warriors stumbled and coasted their way past a team that barely resembled an NBA-caliber squad. Instead, the story focused on the Warriors off the court news.
Draymond Green only played 23 minutes in the 112-95 win and made a single shot out of 10 and didn’t make an appearance to close out the first half in Steve Kerr’s traditional small lineup sequence. After the game, Kerr was curt in his response with a “It just wasn’t his night” and Green was not speaking to the press.
Whatever the problem may be, Draymond is struggling through a long stretch of the regular season and it’s starting to wear on his head coach. Through the larger picture, the Warriors are fine. They just clinched a playoff spot quicker than last season, the fastest in team history. Stephen Curry is back to his MVP ways and the team is more dynamic on both sides of the ball this time around.
The theme off the court belongs to Steve Kerr. The Warriors released Briante Weber and the players were none too pleased. Despite a strong showing in his time on the floor, Weber’s inexperience and inability to shoot opened a door for Jose Calderon, the point guard Anderson Varejao.
In a vacuum, this move doesn’t mean much. He shouldn’t play much, if at all, when the games actually matter. Unfortunately, we’ve seen that thought process go by the wayside in Game 7 of the NBA Finals last year. While the Warriors would remain heavy favorites regardless of who their third-string point guard, this move closes up that margin of error just a tad.