Working his second job as a TNT analyst during Sunday’s All-Star Game, Warriors forward Draymond Green offered a rough timeline for his return from a back/disc injury that has sidelined him since January 9.
Asked by TNT’s Charles Barkley when he’ll be “coming out of retirement,” Green laughed, then replied, “Hopefully within three to four weeks, that’s what I’m shooting for” (video link via Rob Lopez of FanDuel).
As usual, Green’s scoring numbers have been modest this season through 34 games (29.9 MPG), but he has supplemented his 7.9 PPG with 7.6 RPG, 7.4 APG, and stellar defense.
The Warriors still have the NBA’s best defensive rating (104.6), but they haven’t been nearly as effective on that side of the ball since Green went down. That league-best defensive rating was at 101.9 after January 9 — since then, the club has recorded a 109.9 mark.
Golden State is also waiting on James Wiseman‘s return from a knee injury that has kept him on the shelf for the entire 2021/22 season so far. Wiseman, who has participated in 5-on-5 scrimmages, said last week that he’s in the final stages of his rehab process, so the expectation is that both he and Green will be back well before the playoffs get underway in mid-April.
Get healthy !
Hopefully GSW gets healthy by playoffs. I’m a diehard Bulls fan, but appreciate what GSW has done and how they have left their imprint on the game’s legacy and history. Fantastic story and collection of stars, who nobody thought would be a modern day dynasty. This version of GSW is easier to root for than the KD version. Fantastic depth and collection of role players who have bought into the mindset and culture set by Steph/Klay/Dray and Kerr/Myers.
Draymond’s injury came out of nowhere without any warning. It’s kind of mysterious…. Nobody thought this would be this long, but it’s all good as long as he come back healthy and he will have fresh legs as a bonus.
He’s about to be 32 has high usage and plays great D against bigger guys in the middle. Really that’s a mystery to you?
They didnt talk about his injury until the day Klay came back, and nobody thought it was a serious at the time.