Danny Green Reveals He Was Playing with Achilles Pain During His Crucial Game 5 Miss

Published 10/17/2020, 7:09 AM EDT

The Los Angeles Lakers, with their recent win, are tied for the most championships for a franchise with the Celtics, beating the Miami Heat 4-2. The NBA Bubble has proven to be an excellent initiative, with zero positive COVID-19 cases during its existence. But Lakers’ star Danny Green has come forward to talk about the challenges it caused to himself and others.

Many players, like Paul George, have come forward to talk about how the bubble is an extremely difficult experience. Being away from their families and being asked to focus on basketball takes a major toll on the NBA players. Players have spoken about their mental health deteriorating in the bubble.

The Lakers’ championship run will go down in history, with the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic leading to the creation of the bubble. The Lakers beat the Trailblazers, Rockets, Nuggets, and the Heat on their path to a championship.

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While most players have admitted to struggling in the bubble, the Lakers have lauded the strength of character required. In a situation like this, players look to their teammates and organization for strength and support. Lakers’ Danny Green is thankful to a member of the Laker’s front office for the support he gave.

Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Supported Danny Green

Danny Green spoke on his show ‘Inside the Green Room’ about the miss in Game 5. He discussed the fact that he was playing with pain in his Achilles. With regards to fan backlash towards Danny Green for missing a potential game-winner, his co-host Phil Handy said, “If you ain’t with us, you’re against us. We don’t go against family”.

It was pretty clear Danny was hurt more than he was letting on. During this episode, he just mentioned pain in his Achilles (that was never on the injury report).
— Championship Faigen (@hmfaigen) October 17, 2020

“If you ain’t with us, you’re against us. We don’t go against family” -Phil Handy on his message to “fans” who went after Danny Green.
— Championship Faigen (@hmfaigen) October 17, 2020

About his experience in the bubble, Green says that Lakers GM Rob Pelinka was key to the Lakers’ mental strength in the bubble. “(Pelinka) should have been the executive of the year. He was 100% supportive of me when I was having struggles… he’s a big part of the reason why we mentally got through (the bubble).”

Danny just said that Rob Pelinka “should have been executive of the year.”
— Championship Faigen (@hmfaigen) October 17, 2020

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He said Pelinka was “100% supportive of me when I was having struggles… he’s a big part of the reason why we mentally got through (the bubble).”
— Championship Faigen (@hmfaigen) October 17, 2020

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Rob Pelinka is consistently lauded by the Lakers players as being a great general manager, and his experiences with Danny Green and others in the bubble only adds to his great reputation.

Does Rob Pelinka get his due for his work as Lakers GM? How important is the role of a GM to a team?

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Written by:

Aaditya Krishnamurthy is an NBA & NFL journalist for EssentiallySports, before which he worked at BusinessWorld magazine. He has been a fan of Basketball for over 10 years now, since Shaquille O’Neal was a Phoenix Suns player. During his time at Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts, he started a sports magazine for the college called the Overtime Tribune and hosted the Overtime Tribune Podcast until he graduated.

Danny Green Reveals He Was Playing with Achilles Pain During His Crucial Game 5 Miss

Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Supported Danny Green

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