SAN FRANCISCO — Less than 30 seconds into Tuesday night’s game, Draymond Green chased Giannis Antetokounmpo around a screen and blocked the Milwaukee Bucks superstar’s shot underneath the basket.
It was the first of four blocks, two steals and a defensive gem that Green delivered to hold Antetokounmpo to 20 points on 5-for-16 shooting as the Golden State Warriors beat the Bucks 104-93 at Chase Center.
Green not only helped the Warriors win without Stephen Curry (rest), but his smothering defense on Antetokounmpo — who came in averaging 30.4 points per game as the No. 2 scorer in the league — is what Green hopes is the latest case for a second NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award.
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“Obviously, if we keep winning and close this year out strong, most definitely,” Green said when asked if he thinks he has a case to be named the league’s best defender. “I look around the league and don’t see many players impacting the game on the defensive end the way I do. I don’t see many players completely throwing off an entire team’s offense the way I do. One thousand percent.
“Especially with Wemby [the San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama] going down, seemed like he had it won. And now it is right there. So 1 million percent I have a case, and I will continue to build that case for these next 13 games. Tonight was a prime example of that.”
Green’s defense contributed to Antetokounmpo’s worst shooting game in the past two seasons, according to ESPN Research. Antetokounmpo shot 0-for-7 when contested by Green which also matched the Bucks superstar’s most field goal attempts without a make in a game against a single contesting defender in his career, according to Second Spectrum. The Bucks’ 93 points also marked a season low.
Combined with Jimmy Butler’s 24 points, 10 assists and 8 rebounds, Green helped Golden State bounce back following an embarrassing home loss Monday to a Denver Nuggets team that was playing without Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Christian Braun.
“Draymond, that defense tonight on Giannis was incredible,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said of Green, who has nine blocks total in his past two games. “To hold him to five field goals, Draymond showed why he is still one of the great defenders in the world. It wasn’t just the defense; it was the leadership, the energy.”
With Wembanyama out for the season, Green, Cleveland’s Evan Mobley, Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels, Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr., the LA Clippers’ Ivica Zubac and Oklahoma City’s Luguentz Dort, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams are considered among the contenders for the award.
Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year.
“You got some people that have a vote on the East Coast that probably see us play four times a year,” Green said. “And if you look at the stats, you be like, ‘Oh, Draymond averages one steal and a block.’ Those numbers don’t jump off the page at you. But you watch me play and then ask the opposing coach what did I do to [their] offense? It’s a different story.
“This award is widely based off statistics, and those statistics don’t always tell the story. … But I want another one, and I ain’t retired yet. I still got a chance.”
