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With 0.6 seconds left and the Golden State Warriors holding a 113-112 lead, Draymond Green knew the Phoenix Suns were going to Kevin Durant. KD was Phoenix’s biggest threat due to his height, length and clutch gene. After failing to score in the third quarter, Durant was also starting to hum, scoring nine points in the fourth quarter.
With Green denying Durant the inbounds pass, the Suns had to throw it over KD’s head for the former MVP to receive the ball. The Suns’ superstar barely managed to grab the ball, gather himself and shoot almost simultaneously. Golden State’s defensive ace bottled up Durant to seal the game.
Draymond Green stared down Kevin Durant after the final play, thumped his chest and seemingly shouted in Durant’s direction:
“That’s me, motherf**ker!!!”
The last sequence of the game that sealed the Warriors’ win had fans on X (formerly Twitter) reacting:
“Dray owned that snake”
Kevin Durant and Draymond Green were teammates with the Golden State Warriors for three years. They won two championships during that span and could have accomplished a three-peat had KD and Klay Thompson not gone down with injuries in 2019. Durant left the Bay Area after the loss to play with Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn.
During Durant’s stay with the Warriors, he admitted that he didn’t feel like he truly belonged there the way Green, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson did. While in Golden State, KD and “Dray” also had several testy confrontations, which was capped off by Green calling the “Slim Reaper” a “b**ch.”
The two have patched things up and remained friends. Still, every time they meet on the court, there’s always a simmering tension between the two. Draymond Green has never backed down from anyone and he showed plenty of emotion after his impressive defensive stand.
The Warriors needed not just Draymond Green to contain Kevin Durant
Draymond Green made the biggest stop in the game when he prevented Kevin Durant from even attempting a decent potential game-winning shot. The Golden State Warriors, however, needed several players to try and contain the two-time NBA Finals MVP.
During the game, Jonathan Kuminga, Andrew Wiggins, Gary Payton II, Dario Saric and Green had to take turns guarding Durant. For most of the night, Green shadowed Suns center Jusuf Nurkic, but he was decisive with his help every time KD had the ball.
Golden State’s ploy worked as Kevin Durant couldn’t make one shot in the third period. In the fourth quarter, things started to change for the “Slim Reaper.” He was more successful in scoring against the Dubs’ defense even when it was Draymond Green who guarded him.
The final play of the game, however, went to the former Defensive Player of the Game and he let Durant know who won the battle on Saturday.
