NBA FINALS: CELTICS VS. WARRIORS

June 10, 2022

Draymond Green

Golden State Warriors

Game 4: Postgame

Warriors 107, Celtics 97

Q. What did you think of Steph tonight?

DRAYMOND GREEN: Incredible. Put us on his back. Willed us to win. Much-needed win. Game we had to have. Came out and showed why he's one of the best players to ever play this game, you know, and why, you know, this organization has been able to ride him to so much success. It's absolutely incredible.

Q. When you see Steph shoot like that and play like that, everybody can witness that part. But what can you say about toughness against a defense like this with his foot hobbled? What can you say about how resilient he is?

DRAYMOND GREEN: Same thing I've always said. You know, him, one of the most resilient, toughest guys I've ever played with. You know, the way defenses guard him, they are constantly grabbing, and he just continues to play. He don't make much of it. He just continues to do what he does. You know, it just says a lot about his toughness and his competitive nature and what it truly means to be a winner.

Q. What was your reaction and were surprised when you were taken out in the fourth quarter? Looked like you were not thrilled with that, and how did you go through the offense-defense, substituting at the end of the game?

DRAYMOND GREEN: I’m definitely never thrilled coming out of the game with seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter in a must-win game. I'm not going to sit here and act like I was thrilled. I'm a competitor.

But, at the end of the day, if that's what Coach decides, then you roll with it. You know, I had to keep my head in the game and, you know, whenever I went back in, try to make some plays. That was just my mindset. You know, don't make too much of it.

I've always been of the -- on the bandwagon of if you've got something and it's rolling, you stick with it. So it is what it is.

Q. You talked a lot the last couple days about the importance of force, being the leader of that charge. How do you feel you did tonight? The halfcourt defense was sensational, did a much better job of stretching out and getting to their spots. How do you think you did?

DRAYMOND GREEN: I thought it was a lot better, and you can see that with the numbers, you can see that with the eye test, however you want to shake it. I thought we played with a lot more force tonight, and the team that has, has won. That's the key to this series.

Q. Klay was saying how sometimes maybe you guys take what Steph can do for granted and you guys really have to help him on Monday as he's put this team on his back. What do you see the team needing to do and you from an individual standpoint to help Steph?

DRAYMOND GREEN: I think as a team, you kind of do all you can to free him up. You know, they are always throwing one, two or three bodies at him in a given possession, sometimes four. You just try to do what you can to help free him up to get him to his spots or open up some space for him to create and get to his spots.

For us, we've just got to continue to fill in where we may. You've got a shot, take it. You know, you're screening for him, screening for Klay, whoever it is, just doing all that with force.

I think it everybody is forceful on the offensive end, and that means with cuts, that means crisp with your passes, then you allow him to be in the position to do what he do.

Q. Typically with Steph, his emotion comes in the fourth quarter, and I don't know if you saw it, but earlier in the first, he made a couple shots and started screaming at the crowd for a timeout. Did you sense that he was going to have something special with that kind of emotion early?

DRAYMOND GREEN: Yeah, he wasn't letting us lose. That's what it boils down to. You hear all the noise for a day or so, and I could tell in his demeanor the last couple days, even after Game 3, that he was going to come out with that type of fire. And he did, and we were all able to follow it.

Q. What did you think of Wiggins, Looney and Poole and what they gave?

DRAYMOND GREEN: They all gave great minutes. I love JP's aggressiveness coming out. He came out hunting his shot, and we needed that. Wiggs has done what he's done all playoffs. Make it tough for the opposing starter to score.

Got in the teeth with the defense. Rebounded the hell out of the ball, which he's done all playoff long.

And then Loon making those extra plays, had some great finishes around the rim and great rebounding, great inside physical presence for us. All three of those guys have been big for us all playoffs long, and they showed it again tonight.

Q. As you said, they were swarming Steph on the perimeter trying to run him off the line. How important for you are those four-on-three opportunities to try to get into the teeth of the defense and make a play? I saw you made one to Looney late in the game.

DRAYMOND GREEN: I mean, when they’re throwing two guys at Steph, someone has to make the play. I've made a living off that.

So you know that's what it boils down to at that point in the game. Obviously we always want to find Steph, as I think anybody would if you're on this team, you're going to try to find him. He converts at a very high clip.

But in a time like that where they are throwing two guys at him and they are saying, we are not going to let him beat us right now, somebody else has to make the play. I was able to get a drop-off to Loon on two-on-one, and he had a great finish.

Q. You and some of the players have been in similar situations to this in the Finals, being down, having to regain home-court advantage. What has been your message to the other guys that haven't been here and getting prepared for this moment, because you're going to have to come back here to Boston for Game 6?

DRAYMOND GREEN: Just understanding in the force that we needed to play with; the focus level that it takes to go on the road and win in a tough environment like this. I think our young guys have been great. They have adjusted to everything that we've asked of them and you know, it shows. What did we play, nine guys tonight? I think every guy who came in had a good impact on the game for us.

So just telling them to stay the course. Understand that, you know, teams like this, they come out, they punch you, just got to stay the course, continue to chip away at it for 48 minutes and if you put a solid 48 minutes together, give ourselves a chance to win.