As the Golden State Warriors enter their first-round matchup against the scrappy Houston Rockets, the team's ability to match Houston's defensive intensity will be vital to the outcome of the series.
The Rockets, this season, were the one of the best defensive teams in the NBA, posting a 110.3 defensive rating over their 82-game schedule.
Their athletic combination of Amen Thompson, Tari Eason, and Dillon Brooks has been brutal in the frontcourt for their opponents, and their emerging star center, Alperen Sengun, has made his presence felt on both ends of the floor throughout this season.
The Warriors, in order to pass through this gauntlet, must rely upon their defensive quarterback, Draymond Green, to play his role both offensively and defensively.
Warriors-Rockets may hinge on Draymond Green
Green, who has been in contention for his second Defensive Player of the Year Award, has had another excellent year for Golden State defensively. Under his guidance, the Warriors have posted a defensive rating of 111.0 this season, landing them at seventh in the NBA in that category even through their brutal mid-season slump.
Green himself has posted a defensive box plus-minus of 2.8: the best out of all regular rotation players for Golden State.
His ability to position himself correctly and hedge against his below-average size and weight as a rim protector is well-noted, and Green will need every ounce of that ability this series as he matches up against Sengun.
Sengun has, arguably, been the Rockets' best offensive player this season, averaging 19.1 points, 10.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists through 76 games.
In the two teams' last matchup, Green struggled to prevent Sengun from getting to his spots, allowing the Rockets center to post 19 points in brutal Warriors loss.
While their other primary offensive producer, Jalen Green, can be highly inefficient and relatively easily limited by opposing defenses, Golden State will desperately need Green to step up and make Sengun's life as difficult as possible.
On the offensive end of the floor, it is likely that Sengun will sag off of Green in favor of attempting to clog the driving lanes of Jimmy Butler and, possibly, Jonathan Kuminga.
Green, who has averaged nine points this season, is certainly not known as a scorer. However, he does make winning plays, and, if he can take advantage of his relaxed defensive coverage, he might be able to score double digits in certain games of the series.
This would be a major boost to the Warriors as this projects to be a low-scoring, high-intensity series.
In short, while the likes of Butler and Stephen Curry will set the tone for this series offensively, it is Green's intensity that could push them over the finish line.