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NBA FINALS: CAVALIERS v WARRIORS

June 15, 2016

Draymond Green

Cleveland, Ohio: Practice Day

Q. How tough will it be for you to get past this suspension? And what kind of reaction do you expect tomorrow night??
DRAYMOND GREEN: First off, to acknowledge that it is what it is. I missed Game 5. It's done and over with now. I let my teammates down not being in the game, regardless of whether I want to say, "Oh, man, it wasn't that much," or whether someone else wants to have an opinion and say, "Oh, it wasn't that much" [or] "I shouldn't have been suspended; he should have been suspended." I think at the end of the day, everybody's going to have their opinion on it. At this point, it doesn't matter anymore. We lost Game 5, we're here for Game 6. I have to be better and not put myself in that position to where it is a decision, where there is an investigation. I have to be better for my teammates as a leader of this team. I can't put myself in a position where I can't be there for my teammates on the floor. I do my teammates no justice in street clothes watching the game at the A's game.

I thank the people over at the A's for having me. I had as good of a time as I possibly could watching my teammates. They were great. They showed great hospitality. I owe it to my teammates to come back and give all that I have, all that I can do to better this situation.

I have strong belief that if I play Game 5, we win. But I didn't because I put myself in a situation where I wasn't able to play. I think my teammates fought and didn't play well, but still with six minutes to go, down six points, continued to battle and battle. It's on me to come out and help that battle. Not come out and try to be the superstar, try to be the hero, try to be the saving grace, none of that stuff, because being a superstar saving grace hasn't gotten us this far. Being a great team has gotten us this far.

So to come back and be a piece of that great team is what I owe to this team. That's what I'm looking forward to doing. I'll move on from the suspension; we move on. It was Game 5; we're here in Game 6. So it's behind us. We've got an opportunity to do something that I don't know if it's ever been done to where someone -- maybe it has with the Lakers and Celts and all those guys -- wins a championship on someone else's floor two years in a row. We've got that opportunity. It's a fun one. It will be tough.

Cleveland's a very good team. They had some guys find their stride in Game 5. We look to come out and stop that stride and try to get a win on their floor in Game 6. I look forward to that opportunity.

Q. What, if anything, did you learn from this situation?
DRAYMOND GREEN: I learned a lot. As a basketball player, as a man, just things that you have to do. You can't put yourself in certain positions. One thing that I've already been kind of teaching myself and trying to learn how to do is control my emotions. So really just knowing the position that you're in and adjusting to those positions. Not putting yourself in harm's way, and really being a better teammate. The way I view it is me not being out there on the floor to battle with my guys is being a bad teammate. I take pride in being a good teammate.

Whether it's pride, however you want to label it, whatever that is, has to go behind being a good teammate. That can never jump in front of that. Like I said, I put myself in a position to where I couldn't be out there, and the way I view it, it's awful. Terrible teammate. I take pride in being better.

So if anything, being a great teammate at all costs.

Q. Draymond, do you believe that your patience will be tested in Game 6?
DRAYMOND GREEN: I don't go into Game 6 thinking, "Will my patience be tested? Will it not?" It's a hard enough challenge trying to win a game in the NBA Finals. Then you talk about the challenge of winning on the road, that challenge doubles and triples. So that's a hard enough challenge in itself. That's enough to focus on in itself. That's going to always be my focus, to come out and do whatever it takes to help my team win this game.

Q. What was the experience like watching the game from the suite?
DRAYMOND GREEN: It was brutal, man. It was one of the weirdest days ever for me. Knowing that my team's getting ready for a game and this whole day I'm preparing for a game, but I'm really not. It was brutal. Just the entire day knowing that I can't go out here and help my guys. I can't even be around. It's one thing if you're out with an injury. It's another thing if you're out because of suspension. It's a brutal day.

But like I said, my emotions were all over the place. At times, I'm excited. At times, I'm frustrated. At times, I'm down. It's just all over the place, an emotional roller coaster that day. But, like I said, the support that I have from my family and friends, from our organization, from our fans, all that stuff makes everything easier. The reception that I got at the game when they found out what suite I was in, it was great. But I'm not looking for that, because I want to be out there on the floor. The reception that you get on the floor is 10 times better.

But also the support that I received, I can't take that for granted. Like our GM, Bob [Myers], no GM is coming to sit in the suite with you next door. That goes so long and such a far way. Those are the type of things when you say, "I want to be a Warrior forever," that's the stuff that goes a long way. Not when you're winning Game 6 last year in the NBA Finals and everybody's happy; it's in the time of need and who can you turn to? He's been by my side through this entire thing. Joe Lacob, Peter Guber, texting me constantly, kind of sharing that tough moment with me. It meant a lot.

My emotions were all over the place, but like I said, that support system from my family, friends and our organization, my teammates, makes it a little easier.

Q. How do you guys wrap your head around losing Andrew Bogut now for the series?
DRAYMOND GREEN: It's tough not to have Boges out there. He anchors our defense a lot of the time. Very smart, very good passer, great facilitator. It's not like a loss where you say, "Oh, it doesn't matter." It definitely matters.

We're going to miss him, but one thing we always talk about is our depth. So it's an opportunity for someone else to step up. One guy goes down, another guy has to step up. I'm not sure what the rotations or none of that stuff will be, but whoever touches the floor, it's an opportunity to step up and give to this team what -- nobody will be Bogut, but give to this team what you can give.

Q. Game 6 last year, winning here. As much as you'd like to do it at home, how sweet is it to win a championship on somebody else's court?
DRAYMOND GREEN: It's an amazing feeling when you can quiet 20,000 screaming fans. Celebrate on their floor, celebrate in the locker room -- it's an amazing feeling. It's hard. That's what makes it feel even better, because it's so much harder. We know the formula. We know the blueprint. We know that it's not easy, though. In order to do it, you have to be locked in from the jump. I think guys understand that. I have no doubt in my mind guys will be ready to do that.

Q. You said you were a terrible teammate. Do you feel the need to address your teammates as a group? Individually? Have you already done that?
DRAYMOND GREEN: I've already talked to my teammates. At this point, like I said, we move on from it. We've got Game 6 to win. That's our focus, to come in this building and win another championship. It won't be easy at all, but it's possible and we look forward to doing it. It's one of the toughest challenges that you'll ever go through, but when you conquer that challenge, it's one of the best feelings that you'll ever experience.

We look forward to Game 6 tomorrow, being locked in and ready to go, and trying to claim the title.

Q. One of the things that makes you such a great player is your intensity and the effect you can have on a game with your emotion, with your physicality. How do you maintain that fine line and still have that same impact, especially against the fury of LeBron, but not taking any chances of having any kind of flagrant fouls, technical fouls or anything like that?
DRAYMOND GREEN: I think I've got to come out and play my game regardless. But there are those little fine lines where you just know you can't cross them. It's not every play that you're close to that line. It's a basketball game, so there are only certain plays where you are. I just have to make sure that I'm well-composed when those situations come about, that I control my emotions, that I channel that energy and use it in a positive way to help my team and not in a way to where I may feel like it helps me as a person, me as a man, but hurts my teammates. That's irrelevant.

So just really channeling that energy and bottling it all up to use it for my teammates in a good way.

Q. What do you think about LeBron James?
DRAYMOND GREEN: He's a great player.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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