The Warriors were thrilled to have Draymond Green return to action Tuesday after his involvement in the Timberwolves scuffle resulted in a five-game suspension.After the NBA penalized the veteran forward for putting Rudy Gobert in a headlock, Warriors coach Steve Kerr admitted Green “took it too far” and acknowledged Green has to do better for his teammates as one of the most important leaders of the team.
But in Tuesday’s loss to the Sacramento Kings, it appears Green didn’t learn his lesson.
“[It’s] disappointing because Draymond, he drives a lot of our results,” Kerr said Wednesday on 95.7 The Game’s “Willard and Dibs.” “I’ve told people over the years that we don’t have a single championship without Draymond and I fully believe that. Our teams have been so skilled, but Draymond is a guy who gives us a defensive force, the emotion, the edge. There’s just a different mentality with our team with Draymond and he takes us over the top. So he’s a very powerful figure and he knows that and he and I have talked about that.
“But he has to harness that power. I was disappointed last night that he got that tech, reaction to the foul afterward because the momentum really swung in Sacramento’s favor after that. So he’s got to be better and he knows that.”
In a trip 90 miles up I-80 to visit their Northern California neighbors, there was a lot on the line for this matchup between Golden State and Sacramento. Aside from their newborn rivalry stemming from last season’s seven-game playoff series, the NBA In-Season Tournament was on the line.
The Warriors started strong — and so did Green, even knocking down two 3-pointers in the first half. But fans inside Golden 1 Center weren’t very neighborly to Green, who received loud boos every time he touched the ball.
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