It was just like old times.
Blake Griffin, with all his muscles and athleticism, trying to muster his strength to impose his will. Draymond Green, with his untold strength and genius-level instincts, standing Griffin up and beating him to the spots.
This time, Griffin was wearing a Pistons uniform. It was the first time Green faced Griffin since the Los Angeles Clippers traded him to Detroit. The Warriors had already played the Pistons twice when Griffin was traded last year and Green missed the meeting in Motown earlier this season. And the two picked up right where they left off.
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This is the first observation. It was among the most visible in the Warriors’ 121-114 win over Detroit.
“He takes the challenge when he faces Blake,” Steve Kerr said. “They have been going head-to-head for many years and it’s a hell of a challenge. Blake is as tough as anybody to guard and Draymond was fantastic.”
Entering Sunday’s game, Griffin had played 13 games, including the playoffs, against the Warriors with Green as a starter. (Note: Green didn’t get his first start against Griffin and the Clippers until Game 5 of the 2014 first-round playoff series). But in one of those games, he sustained an injury early and played just shy of 10 minutes, so scratch that game from the bunch.
In 12 games against the Warriors with Green as the starter, Griffin averaged 17.1 points on 43.4 percent shooting with 6.6 rebounds and 3.0 turnovers. In half of those matchups, he failed to score 20 points. In a quarter of those matchups, he shot 40 percent or below from the field.
In his eight seasons with the Clippers, Griffin averaged 21.8 points on 50.3 percent shooting with 9.0 rebounds and 2.6 turnovers. So he was worse across the board against the Warriors with Green as a starter.
But Griffin is a better player than when Green last faced him. Griffin has added a 3-pointer to his arsenal. His ball-handling seems more fluid. His experience shows in his reads and patience. He makes plays like he couldn’t with the Clippers.
Still, for some reason, he started the game trying to exorcise old demons. He made the mistake many make, a mistake he should know better by now — he tried to post Green.
“At some point, somebody gotta figure it out,” Green said about teams trying to take advantage of him in the post. “Just don’t target me in the post. I’ve been dealing with that my whole career though. It used to piss me off. Now it’s just like, whatever. If y’all gon’ do that, you’ll probably lose. So that’s how I approach it.”
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Nearly from the outset, Griffin did exactly that against Green.
Well, his first basket came on a pick-and-roll with center Andre Drummond — a sign of how good Griffin has gotten as he’s running the pick-and-roll with a big — as Green went under the screen and Griffin drilled the 3 from the top. After that, Griffin went to the post.
He posted Green on the right low block. Shaun Livingston came over for the double team, which opened up a cutting lane for Detroit’s Bruce Brown. Griffin hit him in stride for a layup before the double team could fully form.
But the next time down, no double came when he posted Draymond. This time, Griffin drew a foul. It was a savvy move by Griffin, using Green’s base forearm against him. He locked onto it and went up for the shot and Green got called for a foul.
Next time down, Griffin went 1-on-1 with Green in the left corner. He worked his way to the block and went for his favorite turnaround. He got a decent look and just missed off the glass with 8:59 left in the first.
Before his next isolation, he had some success against other Warriors. He got a switch to get Kevin Durant on him and blew by Durant for a layup. Then he ran the pick-and-roll with Drummond and got a layup for Drummond out of it. But then he went back to post Green again, inside the seven-minute mark.
Griffin dribbled from the left corner toward the middle, then spun back toward the baseline. Green held his ground, even knocked Griffin off his spot and Griffin flailed a backward layup that went off the side of the backboard. Griffin got the rebound and immediately posted up Green again. This time, he went back to the middle. But instead of spinning, he tried for a jump hook. He short-armed it under pressure from Green.
Griffin tried Green again in the post. It would be the last time of the night. It was an illustration of why Green is so good against Griffin. He just doesn’t get bulled over. He is quick enough to react to Griffin’s constant changes of direction, and Green knows Griffin’s post moves, so he isn’t biting. Green also has a long reach, so it’s tough to get a clean look.
This was all evident in the final minutes of the first quarter. Griffin got the rock with the shot clock winding down. He tried to force his will but made no headway. His turnaround missed but the shot clock went off first.
“Blake is a great player,” Green said. “He’s gotten a lot better since the last time I faced him. So it’s always a challenge and I just try to be physical. Very strong, likes to bully ball from time to time. Just staying my ground and trying to make him take tough shots.”
The rest of the game, smartly, the Pistons worked to get Green off Griffin. They ran him off screens, even drew a couple of fouls on him as he tried to fight through the screen. No, Green did not want to get detached from Griffin. He was locking horns with Griffin.
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“I’d rather them keep going to that,” Green said. “I don’t really want them to switch off. Keep trying to post me. I enjoy that. I take pride in getting stops. I really don’t take pride in somebody trying to take me out of the action. I hate that. I like to be in the action and in the middle of things. I just take pride in getting stops.”
2. KD’s six-shooter
Durant played 35 minutes and 25 seconds. He took six shots. Six. And he made five of them.
The last time Durant took six shots or fewer? Feb. 28, 2017, at the Wizards. He took one shot that game. But that was because two minutes into the game, Zaza Pachulia fell into his knee — more on Pachulia later — and sprained his MCL.
Only two other times in his career did he take six shots or fewer: in 2009 with OKC and 2007 with the Seattle Sonics. In both games, he played fewer than 13 minutes. Durant has never played 20 minutes, or 25 minutes, or 35 minutes, and taken just six shots. Until Sunday night.
So, I asked him about it. Here is the exchange.
Note: After he gave his answer, off the mic I clarified that when he said “you” he meant the media in general. He said, no, me specifically. I reminded him I wrote a piece about how good Point KD has been this year and he relented.
Durant was right, though. Him getting so few shots was a product of him just doing other things. He was an active facilitator. His effort on defense was visible. He had only 14 points, which for him is a half of work, but he also had 11 assists.
There was one transition that kind of signified how he was thinking. Inside of five minutes left in the second quarter, Alfonzo McKinnie got a steal and started the Warriors’ fast break. Stephen Curry, coming down the right side, whipped a cross-court pass to Durant, who was stepping into an easy transition 3 — from the left side, too, where he loves it. It was surprising that Curry saw him and that he passed it, so the play stood out. But instead of taking the shot, as expected, Durant already saw the next move ahead. Green was running down the middle of the court. He immediately dropped off a touch pass to Green, who cruised in for the dunk, putting the Warriors up 49-43.
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Point KD was clicking.
“Kevin is such a great, talented player that he can just do whatever he wants on the floor,” Kerr said. “He decided to be a distributor tonight with obviously 11 assists. I thought his defense was great. He’s just one of those guys who is so talented he can kind of — whatever he chooses to do that night, that’s what he does.”
The previous game, when the Warriors got mollywhopped by Dallas, Durant was 9 for 25 from the field. He missed all eight of his 3-pointers. With Curry back in the lineup, he had the luxury of not forcing shots and he took the opportunity to ease off the field goal buffet.
“I think he was very good distributing the basketball,” Green said. “Eleven assists and two turnovers, can’t complain about that. But when it boils down to it we are going to need Kevin Durant taking more than six shots. Nobody is complaining about it that he only took six shots tonight. It’s not the end of the world. But when its money time, we’re not going to have Kevin Durant taking six shots.”
3. Kerr offers perspective on Warriors’ eggs
Oracle was indeed rocking. There might be a direct correlation between fan energy and the Warriors’ effort. After the debacle against Dallas, the Warriors came out clearly more motivated. And the fans responded, taking Klay Thompson’s advice and getting off their feet for every play that might be worthy of a social media post.
After the game, Kerr chimed in on the criticism his team has taken for laying so many eggs this season, especially at home. Here is Kerr:
“Here’s what I think: I drove home last night and as disappointed and surprised as I was I realized that over five years what’s more surprising than that game last night is not having any of those games for three years. The first three years of this run, I don’t think we had a single game like that. You think about what these guys are doing night after night after night, taking everybody’s best shot, playing deep into June — it’s actually surprising that we haven’t had more of those nights over those years. What you have seen the last couple of years, the last two seasons, is that we have had some letdowns and some nights like that. It’s hard for anybody to understand what these guys go through physically, emotionally and spiritually just trying to defend the crown, trying to win the title and stay on top of the mountain. It’s hard and last night they had nothing. They had nothing in the tank. The great thing about this team, as I mentioned, is they always bounce back because they have so much pride. What they have accomplished — this team has the best record over the last four seasons as any four-year run in the history of the NBA. What they have done is just remarkable. Last night was tough, but it’s really tough to do what they have done, too. We are going to give them a pass and we are going to move on. We played a good game tonight and we roll on. I prefer to look back at how few games there have been like last night over the last five years rather than the opposite.”
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4. Rested Steph Curry
A big reason for the surge of energy and execution was the presence of Curry, who returned after one game off.
“Pretty much everything has to do with Steph being on the floor,” Durant said. “He brings so much for us, pick-and-roll, with his movement and 3-point shooting, just his presence out there opens up a lot of us. So it was good to have him back.”
Curry made his first three shots. But it was how they looked that mattered most. They felt like Curry shots. He shot them in rhythm. He was confident. It was smooth.
It looked like the rest helped, even if he didn’t want it.
“To be honest,” Curry said, “before they brought the idea about (sitting out) it wasn’t on my radar at all. I was feeling good. Obviously, I pride myself on being durable and being available. Obviously with the injury early in the year, missing 11 games, it was tough to sit out. I know I haven’t been shooting the ball extremely well but to me it wasn’t really a fatigue thing. It was just kind of how the game was going and, again, it’s a lot about rhythm now at this point. Getting close to the playoffs and want us to be fresh and want us to have a great vibe and good chemistry. So you balance all of that.”
5. The return of Pachulia
Pachulia was back to styling. He’s a fashionable dude. Sunday, he had on some capri-type pants with white shoes. His white shirt was mostly covered with this double-breasted, forest green blazer. He was styling, as usual.
Hey, he’s back in Cali.
“I can wear stuff like this out here,” Pachulia said in the bowels of Oracle after the game. “In Detroit, this does nothing for me. It’s so cold.”
Looking good was a byproduct of feeling good. According to insiders, he had been really looking forward to this day. He brought his whole family to the game. Before the game, his sons were on the court saying hello and taking pictures with his former teammates.
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The Pistons lost, but Pachulia was riding high. He is still incredibly beloved in these parts and he felt it. Before Sunday’s game, he received his championship ring, presented to him by his best buddy on the squad, Thompson.
“Very emotional,” said Pachulia, who got a standing ovation. “It kind of feels like it was a long day when it was not. … Loved everything besides that we lost. I’m very thankful for everything that this team, this organization, this city has done for me and my family. Truly blessed and very thankful for each individual that I had worked with and I had played with and that has coached me and the fans that supported me. … I only spent two years here, but two special years.”
Klay Thompson and Zaza Pachulia forever. (Noah Graham / Getty Images)
6. March Madness in the locker room
The Warriors’ locker room pregame was enthralled with the Duke-UCF game.
Green just kept screaming “Tacko! Tacko!” after UCF’s 7-foot-6 center Tacko Fall dunked late in the game without even getting off the ground, putting UCF up 74-70 with 2:09 left.
DeMarcus Cousins, who could be heard screaming from the private players dining area, came into the locker room and joined Green in acting out Fall’s standing dunk.
Down the stretch, with the game a nail-biter, it was clear the only players rooting for Duke were Quinn Cook, who went there, and Livingston, who signed a letter of intent to play at Duke but entered the NBA Draft instead. Green, Durant and Cousins were pulling for UCF so they could taunt Cook.
Well, Cousins, a Kentucky product, just doesn’t like Duke, for obvious reasons.
They all erupted when it looked like Aubrey Dawkins was about to put UCF up six with an alley-oop dunk. But the fast-break lob from Dayon Griffin wasn’t caught and what looked like a sure two points became a turnover. Durant was in the process of tackling Cook until everyone realized he dropped the pass.
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“Slim,” Green said to Durant, “that’s it. That’s game. You don’t win after that. If you’re UCF, you gotta make the fundamental play. A simple bounce pass and you get an easy layup. If you’re UCF, you don’t throw a lob to try to end it.”
“Nah, they still got time,” Durant said.
“Slim,” Green said, “you don’t win after that.”
Duke’s Cam Reddish hit a 3-pointer, shortly after Green called for a Reddish 3, and Duke was within one. Durant was certain B.J. Taylor would make his pair of free throws, while Green thought he’d miss one, and Taylor made both as UCF was back up 3.
Then it really got wild. Zion Williamson missed the tying 3, causing an eruption. Another one went off when Zion drove and scored a layup over Fall.
“Slim,” Green said, “he’s going to miss this free throw and get his own rebound and put it back.”
When he learned Fall had fouled out, Green was even more certain.
“Missed free throw, offensive rebound, game-winning bucket. Watch, Slim.”
It happened. Zion missed and R.J. Barrett got the rebound and scored the putback. Durant just shook his head.
“That’s because (Fall) fouled out.”
Everybody in the locker room was now watching the Warriors’ television, which normally features video of the coming opponent. Cook was front and center, glued, begging for one more stop. Durant directed Taylor like he could hear him.
“Take the screen. Now turn the corner. That’s your shot.”
Taylor’s runner rolled off the rim.
“That’s a foul!” screamed Cousins, who had retreated back to the dining area.
Dawkins skied in for a putback, but his tip-in rolled around the rim. All the players jumped and screamed when it looked like it was going in. They all gasped in shock when it rolled out. Cook started celebrating like he knew it all along. Durant stood there with a shocked look on his face, his hand over his mouth.
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“Told you, Slim,” Green said. “You don’t throw a fucking alley-oop.”
More bonus observations
The Warriors reclaimed first place in the Western Conference standings as Denver lost at Indiana. It’s setting up so the Nuggets’ April 2 visit to Oracle is for all the marbles. … Curry wore a Baron Davis jersey from the “We Believe” Warriors. When asked where his Speedy Claxton jersey was, he did reveal he had four more throwback Warriors coming. He is paying tribute to Warriors legends of the past. Can you guess the other four players he will honor by wearing their jerseys?
(Photo: Cary Edmondson / USA Today)