The Draymond Green Show - NBA Finals Game 1 Recap + Mailbag

fan duel sports book makes it easy. What's up, everybody? Welcome back to The Draymond Green Show. We are recording this Friday morning, which is obviously the morning after a one twenty to one oh eight Dubs lost in Game one of the finals. UM. I'm here to talk all about it. You're here to listen to it. Let's get into it. Steph had twenty one first quarter points, finished with thirty four UM. So I absolutely love the way Steph came out firing. I think we can get to

more of that UM as the game goes on. I thought I thought we start standing quite a bit um there, especially in the second half, which obviously made you know it. The easiest offense to guard is an offense that stands. And I thought we stood around a lot in the

second half, which obviously makes things tougher on him. And so if we around him can continue to move more like we were in first half and the third quarter, I think that will continue to open things up for him and allow him to do what he started off doing. I also, um, I can't help but to think you come out guns blazing like that, you've heard the noise, you you know the talk, and you're responding to that. When I looked back at the game, I felt him

because I didn't play well. And when he comes out guns blazing like that, playing the way he's playing, I have to make sure that I do my part to make sure that equals that ends in a win. And so I know I have to play better. But the way Steph Curry got out to that start was very promising, and I think, you know, we'll start to see more of that and and myself and other guys can help and make sure that that continues. I Al Horror Marcus

smart and this was the story of the game. By the way, Al Horford Mark is smart and Derek White combined from fifty three from three. Now Al Horford has been shooting the lights out all playoffs. Um Marcus Smart has been shooting the ball extremely well in the playoffs too. Derek White hadn't shot the ball from three, I should say from three extremely well throughout the playoffs, nor historically over his career. What we do know is that he's capable,

and obviously the world know he's capable. Since watching the game last night, we've been knew he was capable. But some of the threes he hit last night, like the rim just had to be why. I think three of the three of the five threes that he made was like right over people, right in the stage. When things like that happen, you have to live with that. At the end of the day, something has to beat you, and you're going to pick in an NBA game. What is more more are likely to not beat you. You

know Jayson Tatum can beat you. You know you know Jalen Brown can beat you. Jaylen Brown had a good game last night, but j t struggled a bit. Now, he struggled a bit from the field, three for seventeen from the field, twelve points, but he did have thirteen and six, which I think is a huge growth, a

huge area growth in his game. I think you know, when you would watch him in the past, if he had a three for seventeen night, you lead that game like, man, he played like he had a rough, rough, rough night. You didn't leave last night's game saying he had a rough night. He had a rough shooting night, but not so much a rough night now and saying that. Obviously,

when you win, winning cures all. And so if he's three for seventeen with thirteen assists, obviously no one's singing the same tune of him not having a rough night. If that game doesn't end in a win. It did end in a win, So you have to give him credit U for the way he was distributing the ball.

But then obviously that is a direct impact, I mean, a direct reflection of those guys making shots like they were knocking shots down and and and and it's also a direct reflection of email udoka Um and the respect that he's commended from this team and what he's taught his guys and and how he's helped him grow. I think it's a direct reflection to that as well. And so what can we do to ensure that that doesn't happen again? Well, I think number one, I think a

lot of our rotations were off. Um, when you have dynamic drivers, guys that can put pressure on the rim, like a Jayson Tatum, like uh, like a Jaylen Brown who put tons put tons of pressure on the rim last night, Um, you're going to be in some help situations and and being in with with that being said, we have to make sure that our rotations are on point when we are going to help. And I don't

think we did that very well last night. I can recall maybe four or five of them on my hand that just led the one pass pass out three and you have to make them make that extra pass. And so I think, you know, and just watching the game, like you know, I was actually questioned last night and like a lot of our hore fers, threes were wide open. Um. You know, Marcus Smart had a couple of wide open ones.

Payton Pritcher had a couple of wide open ones, you know, And so you can take those away, you know, and all of a sudden, those guys aren't shooting fifteen for twenty three from three, they're combining for seven for sixteen seven for seventeen whatever. That doesn't necessarily kill you, but fifteen three it's hard to overcome that. You know, they I think they hit twenty one three is on the night.

Fifteen of them coming from three guys that are not their main three point shooters, another two coming from Peyton Pritchard. You know that's seventeen threes coming from guys that are not their main guys. Who's really putting the ball in the hole now? Marcus Smart has really stepped up his scoring here in the playoffs, um And as I said, he had been shooting well. But again, as we all know, there are two main guys just putting the ball in

the hold is j B and JT. And we did a great job on Jason uh And and making him take tough shots. But how do you get those other guys under control to where they're not having the impact that they had? Now? I leave this game saying, I leave this game saying, and I know what, most people will leave this game saying most people will leave this

game saying Jayson Tatum struggle, he won't struggle like that. Again, the Warriors are in trouble, blah blah blah, which I totally understand, and I'm totally fine with that narrative for whatever people are gonna say, because ultimately that was earned. So you give them that. I personally leave that game saying I won't play as bad as I played again, which will affect our team in a positive way. But more importantly, I leave that game saying, we stopped the

guys that we need to stop. Continue, you know, playing the defense on their guys that we were playing, but stop the guys that we need to stop. They won't shoot fifteen for they won't combine for fifteen fore from three again. So you take that out the game, make a couple of tweaks on the offensive end, and we're right back in business. And so I don't make too much of the loss. Obviously you're down oh one at home, I don't say I don't think it's time to press

a panic button. At the end of the day, it is the first to four, not the first to one, two or three, and so we're not pressing the panic button. Um, they played a good game. You have to give them credit. I thought we played pretty good, all really good at times, but then I thought there was some there were some things that we could really clean up. Thought on the offensive end, we can slow down attack. You know, when you're playing against a team that's pressure and pressure and pressure.

I think for the most part we handled well and then we got sped up, and so I thought, you know, I think we can handle that a lot better. Um, and I think we'll I think we'll respond the right way. Now, you know, have to go back to the film and see some of the things that see some of the things that hurt them on the offensive end for us, and then see the things that you know work for them, and how can we do those things better? And you know, what can we do differently? Uh? And in some of

those spots. But I think for the most part, offensively, we just need to continue to ensure that we don't get stagnant. And at times when you are facing a defense that's switching a lot, you contend they switch, they switch, they switch, and you contend to slow down. And once you slow down and you stop and you stop cutting and all these then the offense just kind of stalls. And so that was I think our remain issuing the

offensive and fourteen turnovers for twenty three points. This team reminds me a lot of the Spurs teams and the old you know back and not old days, I wanna say old days, but the Spurs teams of the past where they don't make a ton of mistakes, and so because they don't make a ton of mistakes, um, they're going to make you beat them. And because of that, they just kind of stayed with them striking this and

stay with them striking this. State was in striking distance as they did last night, and then all of a sudden, you know, if they get hot, then you have a case like you had last night where in the fourth quarter they just got hot. They had missed a shot for the first however many minutes of the fourth quarter um or at least that's what it felt like. And so you can't let the offense stagnate. And then defensively got to shut the water off on the team going

to run. Had to shut the water off. We didn't shut the water off last night, and they got to go on. So I expect us to come out Game two with even a better focus than we came out within game one. I thought game one our focus was was good. Um again, I think there are some things that we can clean up, but I think for the most part. Our focus was good, our intentions was good. We had fourteen turnover, seven of those came in a second quarter, you know, so you clean that up, you

cut that to four. So there are some things that we can clean up, and I know that we will clean up. And you know, we expect to one one go to Boston. The way I view it is in a playoff series, you have to win a game on the road anyway. No, you're not just oh, we played two games at home, windows two going to roll loose, to come back win one. You have to win a role game anyway. So that's where we're at. We needed to win a role game anyway. And my playoff experience,

we've always won a road game. It's no different. Now you gotta go win a game on the road. But first we need to take care of home court, re establish our home court. That's our first home court lost in these playoffs. So we need to re establish our home court, which we will. I like the energy and chasing and last night I thought the energy and there was amazing um And again that's something that we have to capitalize on. And I and I have no doubt in my mind that we will capitalize on that. I

have a question. You don't need to obviously reveal these specific tactical adjustments you guys are trying to make. But take us a little bit behind the curtain and the process, Like, is it you coming out of that game with things you already know you want to adjust to? You watching film today, You're watching film tomorrow You're going to practice. Like what's the process in individually you trying to make adjustments as well as the team as a collective. I

think that process for us is two fold. Um, you have coaches watching philm you have player or threefold? Really, you have coaches watching film after the game, you have myself, Um, Steph Andre was probably watching the film on our own and or leaving the game thinking I think we need

to do this. And so I walked out of the game thinking there are a couple of things, for certain that I know we could have done better, and that a couple of adjustments for certain, offensively and defensively that I know I think will help and that we could have done better. So now what do you do? You take those things will have film today? You take those things to the film room. Hey, these were some of my thoughts some of the things we can get better

now at this point in the season. These are also conversations side by our conversations that myself steph um Clay Andre. These are also side by our conversations that we will be having with coach Kerr on the side, you know, as as some of the things that we think can help. And that's where I always say here, it's a collaborative effort. You know. We we go to coach with some of the things we think, he comes to us with some

of the things he thinks. Ultimately, if we get to one place like coach, I think we should guard this like this, So I think we it's and and even more so on the defensive end, less on the offensive, man, I think we should guard you know this this way

or blah blah blah. Normally, if it's not too far off the rail, he'll go with what we think because he always says, you know, it's important that we are comfortable in the game plan, and so if we want to do something we saw something that we thought worked a little more, you know, he'll usually go that way.

And so that's kind of the process for us. You know, you you walk away from the game just knowing the things you know, then you go watch the film and sometimes some of those things that you walk away where

aren't quite what the film shows. And so then it's this balance of like, all right, the film show that, but if that felt different on the floor, and and you have that that have been something at times as well, if like you know, a coach could watch something on film and be like, ah, this is what I saw on film, and I'm like, yeah, coach, I understand that, and I saw that same thing on film, but this

is how it really felt out there. And then maybe you're somewhere in the middle of that right or maybe you're all the way right or all the way left. But it's, um, you know, that's that's just kind of the nature of it. And so it's a breakdown over the next couple of days, um of really uh digging into the film, and then you watch the film over again, you catch something else that you didn't necessarily catch the last time, and so yeah, this is a couple of

day processes. Obviously that we have a couple of days. If you only have one day, then then that that's what you have. But be that we have a couple a couple of days to let this digest, to figure it out, to make our adjustments and go in the game two rolling. You know, then you just start your process and you're watching the film and you're recalling plays that you can recall, and you kind of move from there. So I'm not sure if that's how it is everywhere else.

Obviously I've only been here, but I know here it is a collaborative effort and that's kind of the way that it goes. UM. So that is my analysis on Game one, my thoughts and other news in the NBA. I saw that UM Commissioner Silver mentioned changing the voting process, or possibly changing the voting process and taking a look at that UM for our NBA teams and and and different awards and things like that, which I think is

it's very important. I saw where he said, UM, it's a scenario of and I'm going to miss quotus words and I can't remember word for word, but he said it's just an area of not so great solutions or something of that nature UM and and the media just being the best of these solutions. I disagree with that. I think, UM, that seems like maybe the more unbiased solution,

but I don't think that's the best solution. I think, I think there are ways that you can go about this, and and if you give enough people a voice from different sectors, you get more of an honest vote. You know, um, like there's a competition committee. Every owner is an on

a competition committee. But because there's an owner and a general manager and possibly some coaches and you know, so on and so forth, you get more of an honest vote because say, if if two owners are biased right then like to this rule because of X y Z. But then you have coaches and you have someone over here, And I think that's how you can get more of

an honest vote. And so you you make up a committee like yeah, maybe they're possibly there's some media on it, but there's some coaches on it, there are some general managers on it, blah blah blah, possibly some agents on there. Like there are ways to make a vote more even. But again, like I said, or you look at the

whole process and determining what actually affects a contract. If you can't figure out the voting for all NBA, then you look at the entire process on what can affect a contract, because again, as I said before, um no, reporter from CNBC has decided whether Jamie Diamond gets his bonuses or not, and so it just doesn't make It's

it's like, it doesn't make sense. You have a scenario where guys can work their whole entire lives for something, and then it's in a lot of cases, it's then decided on someone who has not worked their entire life to play basketball. Most people have not played basketball in

their entire life. And no, playing basketball isn't the marker to speak if you can uh to determine if you can speak on the game or no, playing basketball, um doesn't just validate you to be an analyst, but the fact that you could study writing or not, um, that you can work your way up by writing articles and then decide whether someone makes an extra already seven million dollars and not absolutely insane. So I am happy to see and see that the league is looking is revisiting that.

I think that is incredible. I think it's something that needs to be happened, that needs to happen. It's of one of those old systems that it needs to change. Like, it just makes absolutely no sense that someone who's not evaluating our game from and objective perspective from an objective point of view, with an objective point of view, because sometimes media can be subjective. I think it's absolutely insane that that's how it will be decided, what's some how

much some money someone makes or not. So that's great. UM. I hope some changes does come there. I also saw that Commissioner Silver said that the league is not discussing expansion at this time. Um, Vegas and Seattle just doesn't come out of nowhere, commission, I don't know. I respect the commission, but how did that stuff just fly out of nowhere? So I'm interested to see what happens over

the next couple of years with that, but it'll be interesting. Nonetheless, it was great to get kind of the state of the Union update um and what's going on behind the scenes. That's always cool to catch up on. So hope everyone caught that. I hope everyone enjoyed it. Uh, if you have not called it, maybe go check it out. It is some great stuff there. And you also want to keep up with with what's going on in the game, at least I do, because again, it affects my livelihood.

So that's all I got for you from my point of view. From my thoughts. Take a couple of male bad questions before we get out of here. Jackson, you got anything for me? My brother? I do from dom Ford splashbro at D five five three. As a professional athlete, How sore does the body get during a seven game series? Do you ever still feel sore from your previous game? You get sore from like game the game for sure, because it's you know, you're playing in the series, and

I mean it's intense. Basketball is the most intense basketball are you gonna play? So yeah, from getting like after the game, the night after or the next day, you're a little you're sure, But when you're really sore, it's once the series in because mentally you're kind of in this space of like just locked into the moment, uh, doing whatever you gotta do to get yourself ready for

the next game. And so mentally you can't allow your like you can't allow your mind to go to a place of even thinking like, oh man, I'm just so sore. Like mentally it's like as opposed to your mindset being I'm so sore, your mindset is more so what do I need to do to get my body ready for the next game? And that's a totally different mindset, and so that's kind of where you're at the moment that series ends and you're no longer looking forward to that

next game. You feel like you got hit by semi truck, and it's crazy again. It's one of those things that just goes to show the power of the mind, how powerful one's mind is. Because the moment we finished a series like I go back to like Calves the Cavaliers g Uh series, when we swept those guys. After game four, I couldn't walk. I knew, but I knew the series was over. I don't think the same I would have dealt with the same pain that I was dealing with

after game four if there was a game five. It's not like something you know abruptly happened, or like something happened where I turned round like but sure enough, sooner we were done. I could barely walk for the next three days, And I am certain it wouldn't have been that same thing if we were going to a game five. So it really just shows you how powerful the mind is. From san Ja g At sans Re underscore g This finals is the longest distance between teams about miles since

the last Warrior Celtics Finals. How much does cross country travel slash fatigue come into play? This is sort of an adjacent question to the last one, but it's interesting. I think it definitely comes into play because I think, you know, you fly anywhere that far and it affects you, um, whether you're playing basketball or not. You're not adding the fact that you have to play basketball, and it's a

different story. Now. Hair's where I think, um that where you kind to you you hairs where I think you kind of eliminate that. Yes, it's still tough, you're getting on planes and all of that. But in the NBA Finals, due to the way the media is set up, both teams have to practice at the same place the day

before the game. So with such far travel, just like the Boston Celtics got here on Tuesday after game after Game two on Sunday, we leave Monday, although we don't play the Wednesday, we'll leave on Monday so that we can be there for practice on Tuesday, for media and so on and so forth. So with the NBA Finals, you get that extra day in between for travel due to the media Situa wahition, so you don't it's not

as big of it. It's not as big of a dilemma that you face normally in the season where it's probably only one day or as we saw during the Conference finals, it was one day in between all the games. So that's travel, that's all of that, you don't you know. The NBA Finals they kind of take care of some of that with the with the days in between the game, Like the only game this series that it's only one day in between this games three and four, which both

are in Boston. So that's kind of how I I think that's part of the reason the Lead does it the way they do for the NBA Finals, so that fatigue isn't playing a part instant in scenarios like this, where I mean, that's just just about as far as west you can go and all about as far as

east you can go. So I think, uh, that's why it's like that, That's why the scheduling goes like that, So it's not it doesn't affect the game as much as it could possibly Another another series, last one, we'll go a little bit of a lighter note to close this out from Andrew pim and Tell At Andrew pim and Tell, what was your first big purchase from your rookie year. Hey, Andrew, let me tell you something. And people can take this with a grain, and so I know it's a lot of money, but in theory, when

I break this down to you, it's not. I was the second round pick, Andrew. Now for me, I got more money than most second round picks get from my first year salary. My first year's salary was a hundred and twenty five grand. All right, Andrew, slice that in half because I do site that about bout fifty three because I do live in the Bay Area, So you slice that and no longer let's just call it four hundred grand that I take home forty thousand and that

goes to my apartment complex that I lived in. So there's three hundred sixty thousand, Andrew um and uh three percent of that or four percent of that, which I end up finding out shouldn't have happened on the entire contract. But that's a whole another story went to the agent. Um. So of eight hundred and twenty five thousand, UM four percent is roughly thirty six ish thousand or something. So

now I'm almost had three hundred thousand, Andrew. Now I had to get a car, and I had to get furniture, which was, you know, probably I very cheaply went to a furniture outlet and furnished my apartment, but that was still another thirty thousand dollars. So I met two hundred seventy thousand dollars. Andrew. You get where I'm going with this. I didn't have enough money for a big rookie purchase.

It's not a first round pick. Contrary to of my resume may say, Andrew, I was not the first round pick. So it was a little tight on me with my rookie money because I didn't I didn't make the big money early on. So there you have it, Andrew, I was a little low on cash. There was no big purchase for purchases for me, my man. That is a rot from this episode of The Draymond Green Show. I will check back in with y'all after Game two of these NBA Finals. Until there, it's a rap piece.