Yahoo SportDraymond Green's bizarre halfcourt shot secures Spurs win over Warriors
The Golden State Warriors were engaged in a back-and-forth battle down the stretch with the San Antonio Spurs on Monday.
After the Spurs responded to a late Stephen Curry 3-pointer with a pair of DeMar DeRozan free throws, the Warriors called timeout trailing, 103-100 with 8.7 seconds remaining. Curry time, right?
Not so much.
Draymond, for the win?
Steve Kerr may have drawn up a play to get the ball in Curry’s hands. But Curry never touched it after Damion Lee lobbed an inbounds pass to Draymond Green near halfcourt.
Green caught the ball and almost immediately chucked up a desperation heave from the Spurs logo that predictably ricocheted off the backboard. He launched the shot as Spurs guard Derrick White closed in, apparently expecting White to foul.
One of the Warriors’ worst losses of the season ends in a blunder. Draymond Green, down three, thought Spurs were coming to foul him. They didn’t and he chucked a 40-footer off the backboard with five seconds left. pic.twitter.com/E97E2E4SGG
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 9, 2021
‘What’d he do that for?’
White didn’t foul. And even if he had, it was a questionable decision when Curry — the best 3-point and free throw shooter in the history of the game — was on the floor. With more than eight seconds remaining.
“What’d he do that for?” the Warriors broadcast crew wondered aloud. “No. Why?”
Why, indeed.
DeRozan secured the rebound off Green’s miss, and the Spurs went on to a 105-100 victory sparked by a 27-point effort from Dejounte Murray.
Steve Kerr takes blame
Kerr did his best to take the blame off the veteran Warrior, telling reporters that he didn’t do a good enough job of coaching his players not to expect a foul.
Steve Kerr: "The Spurs generally do not foul in those situations. Probably my fault for not informing the team that the Spurs don't usually foul (up three late)."
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 9, 2021
Here’s Green’s explanation.
“I felt like that was the smartest dumb play in history,” Green told reporters. “A very smart play that ended up being dumb as hell.”
Regardless of blame, it was a bizarre way to lose a game and a frustrating moment from the nine-year veteran who’s just recently found his stride after a tough start to the season. Green has eased his way into the Warriors lineup after a foot injury sidelined him for the first four games and impacted his conditioning.
With rookie center James Wiseman now sidelined, Green has taken on an increased role and responded with a pair of 15-assist efforts in back-to-back games.
But his once reasonably reliable shot has continued to deteriorate (18.9 percent from 3 this season); there’s never a reason for Green to take a high-stakes shot. Especially one as bad as that.
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