Draymond Green has cemented his stature as a franchise legend of the Golden State Warriors, and as a future Hall of Famer thanks to his four All-Star selections, Defensive Player of the Year title, and four NBA championships.
Yet there's still many critics who believe Green has simply been the biggest beneficiary of playing his entire career with Stephen Curry. Those pushing that argument were not only given fuel through Green's horror performance on Thursday night against the Boston Celtics, but also in the aftermath with a very specific quote from head coach Steve Kerr.
Steve Kerr gifts perfect fuel to Draymond Green critics
Speaking on Friday after the 121-110 loss to the former Finals rival, Kerr acknowledged that Green is the player impacted most whenever Curry is sidelined by an injury concern.
"When Steph goes out, it really changes everything in terms of how defenses guard us. And it impacts Draymond probably more than anybody," Kerr said (via Sam Gordon of the San Fransisco Chronicle).
This quote may perfectly illustrate what many of Green's detractors have been saying for years, that the 35-year-old is overrated and wouldn't be anywhere near the same level of player without playing alongside the greatest shooter of all-time.
Curry missed his sixth-straight game on Thursday against the Celtics due to a knee injury, and will miss at least another four after Golden State announced that the 2x MVP would be re-evaluated in 10 days.
Green delivered one of his worst performances of the season, going scoreless and finishing with just two rebounds and three assists in less than 19 minutes. The veteran forward missed all seven of his shots, including five from 3-point range, while being a -28 in the 11-point loss.
It's the fourth time in the last six games without Curry that Green has played less than 26 minutes, with Steve Kerr often going to 39-year-old Al Horford to generate more offense in closing lineups.
However, it must also be acknowledged that Green produced one of his best performances of the season in this stretch too, having gone for 17 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists in a fascinating battle against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs right before the All-Star break.
It's been a long-running joke for years that Green never really shows up when Curry is out of the lineup, but his detractors would say that's simply because he's not good enough to impact significantly without one of the league's all-time greats next to him.