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After Stephen Curry and the Warriors’ Triumph in Nail-Biter, Draymond Green Embraces the Bench With Arms Wide Open

Published 04/24/2023, 1:35 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

The Golden State Warriors hung on to dear life to even the series 2-2 in Game 4 against the Sacramento Kings. The Warriors really won a nail-biter as they triumphed over Sacramento with a final score of 125-126. And this was a win without their star defender, Draymond Green, in the starting lineup. As the Warriors managed to win back-to-back games on their home court, Green was happy to embrace the new role he was given with the team.

After stepping on Kings center Domantas Sabonis’ chest, Draymond Green was handed a flagrant two-foul. This led to his suspension from Game 3, but the rest of the Warriors’ lineup made up for it, getting the win.

Draymond Green embracing his new role

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Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors roster must’ve breathed a sigh of relief seeing Draymond Green back in the lineup. Given how crucial these two games were, the Bayside team could not afford any slip-ups.

USA Today via Reuters

However, there was a major change in the Warriors’ starting lineup even after Green’s return. Golden State went with a small-ball lineup, replacing Draymond Green with Jordan Poole in the starting five.

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After the Warriors’ win over the Kings, Draymond Green was asked to shed some light on his new bench role. To that, Green said, “I made a suggestion. I would not say it’s my decision because we don’t make decisions. We have an incredible coaching staff led by an incredible head coach that makes a ton of decisions.”

“I just threw it out there, ‘If I need to come off the bench, no problem. Let’s go for it.’ Will it continue to be that way? We won again. If it continues to be that way, great, no problem. Let’s go. Win again. If we win the next one, do it again.”

Stephen Curry and the Warriors even the series

This was the first time since the 2014 NBA season that Draymond Green came off the bench. And to think of it, it was Green who made the suggestion. This only goes to show that he was willing to put himself aside for the entire team’s benefit.

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Watch This Story – 5 times Draymond Green restored to dirty fouls that occasionally got him ejected

The four-time NBA champion’s suggestion not only worked but also paid off in an almost must-win game. Green did an amazing job coming off the bench, holding the Kings to 5-15 shooting as the primary defender.

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He even managed to lock up the Kings’ leading scorer De’Aaron Fox as well. Now as both teams head back to Sacramento, let’s see who comes out on top in Game 5.

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Written by:

Abhishek Dhariwal

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Abhishek Dhariwal is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports with a background in journalism and mass communication. Abhishek uses storytelling along with feedback gathering to curate elegant and exclusive content for ES. His writing covers a wide range of topics, from in-game coverage to off-court activities of NBA stars.
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Edited by:

Rohini Kottu