Why Draymond deliberately kept his emotions in check for Klay’s return

Why Draymond deliberately kept emotions in check for Klay’s return originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — On a night when emotions ran high on Chase Center Court and in the crowd, the Warriors’ most passionate player did a great job of keeping his own emotions in check.

Draymond Green put together a signature scoreline that has defined his brilliant and spirited career: 11 points, seven rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks – and played a crucial role in the Warriors’ 120-117 victory over Klay Thompson and the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday.

It was Thompson’s first game back at Chase Center since leaving the Bay Area basketball dynasty he helped build by signing a free-agent contract with the Mavericks.

The ever-popular Thompson was loudly cheered by the crowd as a pre-game tribute video played on the scoreboard above the field – and the good feelings for the former Splash Brother continued throughout the night.

About the only person who didn’t get caught up in all the commotion was Green.

“We just wanted to win the game,” Green said. “It wasn’t really about Klay. Of course, when Klay came back here, we knew he was going to be competitive as always. It wasn’t quite good enough today.

“We weren’t out there like, ‘Oh man, Klay is wearing a different jersey.’ It is what it is. We had great years here. He’s over there trying to do something special, we’re over here trying to do something special. Once you get between those lines, all the extra stuff goes out the window.”

Most of the conversation leading up to the game revolved around the emotions Thompson and Stephen Curry would feel. These two, along with Green, were the cornerstones as the Dubs won four NBA titles in eight years.

Green managed to avoid much of this chatter, but couldn’t escape it when the day finally came.

Even then, the Warriors’ four-time All-Star didn’t shy away.

“If I’m being completely honest, I had no feelings about, ‘Oh, this is Klay’s return,'” Green said. “I did a few things to make sure I didn’t feel any emotion, but it wasn’t that I just didn’t care. No, of course. We are human, we care. But I’ve been there for a long time and have played against a lot of friends. This is obviously different. Klay Thompson gets as much credit for this as Steph Curry and I do. No longer. He’s right in the middle of it all.”

As true as that was, Green tried to keep the moment of Thompson’s return in perspective. In his eyes, it was just another regular season game.

“It just wasn’t for me,” Green said. “It was a basketball game that we really wanted to win, that meant more than just a regular season game, and that was it.”

Green definitely had fun with it.

Midway through the third quarter, he sank a clutch 3-pointer in front of the Mavs’ bench, then spun around and started chirping at the Dallas bench.

Green later fed Moses Moody a bounce pass in the fourth quarter that led to a dunk and a 104-103 lead for Golden State.

“(Warriors assistant coach) Chris DeMarco said he was playing like it was Game 7 of the (NBA) Finals,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “But this is Draymond, he’s the ultimate competitor.”

Green spent a few moments with Thompson, but after the clue, everything mattered to both men.

“You don’t win four championships together without that fighting spirit,” Green said. “He has that, and we’ve always known that. We have this, and he always knew it. That will always happen. When you play.” Against someone close to you, you want to beat them even more. Seeing him there makes you want to do great things, and that was kind of the mindset.”

To keep his emotions under control, Green did not appear on the court when the Thompson tribute video played. Green had previously watched the video and found it best if he stood back while it played in front of the audience.

“I just didn’t want to deal with those emotions because there’s a love for Klay that doesn’t go anywhere. But when B. sees his reps, we are all a part of it,” Green said. “Then you start to get into the emotion of, ‘Oh, I remember that.’ “We had to overcome this in this playoff run.”

“You start going in that direction, let him have that. That was a big deal for me. I just didn’t want to stand out when I first watched his tribute video.”

Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast