How impactful is Draymond Green?

Draymond Green’s impact on the Warriors is unprecedented in today’s NBA. A player who doesn’t average over 10 PPG is having a huge impact on the best team in the league? Even though he is not your traditional star, he provides the Warriors with excellent playmaking and elite defense. In this article, we will be taking a look at what makes Draymond so special to the Warriors and how hard it is for them to win without him.

Draymond Green’s defense is a specialty of his that is widely known around the league. Going into games, people can expect him to lock down your best player. But what exactly does this mean when Draymond isn’t playing? This season, the Warriors have a defensive rating of 102.1 which is the best in league. Without Draymond, their defensive rating is at 111.4 which is one of the worst in the league. Just this stat right here can show us just how much of an impact Draymond has defensively. Draymond’s defensive impact has never been denied by most fans but the full impact has never been fully appreciated.

One of the most underrated parts of Draymond’s game is his playmaking. The Warriors this season have averaged 22.7 assists per game without Draymond Green. With him, they average 27.8 which is second best in the league only trailing the San Antonio Spurs. For reference, the Boston Celtics average 22.7 assists per game which is 22nd in the league. When it comes to playmaking, you can always look at assists and judge a player. But in reality, that’s only part of it. The eye test is crucial to truly understand just how many points one player can create even when he’s not the one taking the shot.