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Golden State Warriors: Three takeaways from round two of the playoffs

By Isaac Gutierrez

OAKLAND, CA - MAY 08: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors is congratulated by Andre Iguodala #9 and Kevin Durant #35 after he made a basket against the New Orleans Pelicans during Game Five of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2018 NBA Playoffs at ORACLE Arena on May 8, 2018 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - MAY 08: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors is congratulated by Andre Iguodala #9 and Kevin Durant #35 after he made a basket against the New Orleans Pelicans during Game Five of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2018 NBA Playoffs at ORACLE Arena on May 8, 2018 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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Golden State Warriors
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Playoff Draymond has arrived

11 points per game, 45% field goal percentage, 30% three point percentage, 7.6 rebounds per game, 7.3 assists per game, and 1.4 steals per game. These were Draymond Green’s regular season stats.

These stats are nothing particularly impressive, as they are very similar to his 2017 regular season stats. What is impressive, is his stat line from this past series.

14.8 points per game, 40% field goal percentage, 40% three point percentage,11.8 rebounds per game, 10 assists per game, and 2.2 steals per game. Draymond Green has elevated his play in every facet of the game during the playoffs, and this isn’t the first time. Green did the exact same thing in last season’s playoffs.

These two years of repeated improvement in the playoffs tell us one thing.

Playoff Draymond is real.

And teams should be scared of him.

Not only does Draymond Green’s game improve statistically in the post season, but so has his intensity. As previously mentioned, the Warriors lacked the intensity they had in previous years, leading them to struggle at times in the regular season, especially on defense.

Green is the team’s heart and soul. He has a very large personality who’s energy serves to ignite the entire team. When he isn’t behaving as he typically does, the team feels it.

That is exactly what happened during the regular season. Now that Draymond Green is once again putting in the effort and energy as we usually see from him, the team improves on the court because of his higher level of production, and more importantly they got their edge and intensity back– which they rely on heavily.

Next: What Draymond Green and worm poop have in common

It is hard to make a case for Draymond Green being the most important player on the Warriors, due to the presence of two all time great MVPs on the team. But if there was ever an 11 point per game scorer who’s importance to a team rivals that of two of the greatest scorers to ever live, it is Draymond Green.

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