The Warriors’s four game road trip couldn’t have gone any better.
Golden State is flying back to Oakland with four quality wins over Toronto, Boston, Milwaukee and Indiana. The victories came in a variety of fashions. Klay Thompson is finally starting to heat up. Much to the delight of Steve Kerr, this team has figured out ball movement — a whopping eight straight games with 30 assists or more.
This Warriors team has gelled considerably, and that includes off the court.
After beating the Pacers, Kevin Durant told reporters how important Draymond Green has been to this eight game win streak.
“My campaign starts now: Draymond Green for Defensive Player of the Year,” Durant said. “Hopefully you guys realize what he’s doing on the court, the small things that goes into being a great defender. It’s kind of half and half. He’s got to start his campaign, which (we’ve) started already.”
With Green leading the show during the road trip, the Warriors improved their defensive efficiency ranking from 24th to 15th. Green is currently averaging 1.7 blocks per game, which would be a career-high.
“He’s covering a lot of ground for us,” Durant said. “Guarding 1-5, rebounding, blocking shots. He’s doing it all.”
Green has finished second in DPOY voting the last two seasons, losing out both times to Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard. Green received the most first place votes for the award last year.
Durant also added this about the NBA’s awards, which will now be televised with a host after the NBA Finals.
“That stuff is a popularity contest,” Durant said.
It’s an open secret that Green’s recruitment of Durant went on for months. Draymond assured KD he’d be comfortable and still get his shots in Golden State.
Now KD is repaying the favor. The Warriors probably won’t be winning many individual awards from the 2016-17 season, but if there’s one that they actually care about, it’s Draymond finally getting recognition for his defensive wizardry.