We talk all the time about how smart Draymond Green is, that his court vision and defensive calls are brilliant.
A shot attempt he made in a loss to the San Antonio Spurs was, as far as I can tell, not one of his smarter moments.
But there is a decent explanation for it, even if it turned out to be a very bad shot that definitely should have been, instead, taken by Steph Curry. Because when you have one of the greatest shooters in NBA history on your team, he should take it.
With the Dubs down three, Green got an inbounds pass near halfcourt with under nine seconds to go … and he tossed it up like he accidentally hit the shoot button on his controller instead of pass. Off the backboard it went, and game over.
It was bad. Curry’s expression said it all:
Draymond attempted a game-tying shot from near half court and missed.
Warriors lose pic.twitter.com/ENPof64vVx
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 9, 2021
So why’d he do it with Dejounte Murray on him? It seemed like he was trying to draw a foul and shoot three free throws. But he called it the “smartest dumb play in history.”
"I feel like that was the smartest dumb play in history… very smart play that ended up being dumb as h–l." pic.twitter.com/T1szjBdYx9
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) February 9, 2021
Steve Kerr actually took responsibility here, which he shouldn’t!
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
The thing is, I get it. He perhaps thought Murray would plow into him. But here’s a case where it’s almost overthinking it. Simply grab the pass, let Curry get open and give him the ball next time.
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