The Golden State Warriors have had guard Jordan Poole and forward Andrew Wiggins already entered the league’s mandated health and safety protocols for those that have tested positive for Covid-19.
They’ll lose another key player for the next couple of days. Three-time All-Star forward Draymond Green has reportedly been put in the protocols and will more than likely miss around the next week of Warriors basketball.
Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green has entered health and safety protocols which will be a brutal blow for the Dubs next several games.
Green’s been the second most important player for this team. His impact defensively is almost as crucial as two-time MVP Stephen Curry‘s impact offensively.
Green is arguably the leading candidate for Defensive Player of the Year. Thankfully, Golden State has soared past expectations which will allow some of these unforeseeable issues to not knock them out of playoff contention.
A similar thing is happening with the Lakers who are short players and severely struggling to keep pace despite their team’s star power. The Warriors have had several players miss time, but none will be more crucial than Green.
This season, Green is averaging just 8.4 points per game, but he makes that up by bringing down 7.9 rebounds and dishing out 7.5 assists per game. The impact that Green has is clear as he’s disruptive on both ends of the court.
The Warriors are 9 points per 100 possessions better with Green on the court.
With that in mind, the Warriors have the Nuggets coming to town on Tuesday. Given that Green would likely be on the league’s current MVP, Nikola Jokic, his absence will be felt. After that game, they’ll get Denver again then Utah, Miami, and Dallas.
It’s not going to be an easy next week and a half. Even if Green were playing, the next several games would not be a walk in the park.
However, at 27-6, the Warriors have the best record in the NBA. That’s going to buy them some time until Green returns. The only way this could get worse for Golden State is if Curry then has to enter the league’s protocols which almost seems probable at this point.