Golden State Warriors: 3 takeaways from Game 5 vs. Spurs

3. Green “overhelping?”

After wondering all season whether Green had lost a step or was just saving himself for the playoffs, we seem to have gotten our answer. Both are true.

There’s no question he’s locked in. Green is flying around the court as a help defender, break starter and rebounder, playing his token brand of uber-versatile basketball. He’s just not doing so quite as well as he used to.

Warriors broadcaster Jim Barnett repeatedly commented on how Green was “overhelping” in Game 5. While it is true that Green allowed some easy baskets by trying to be in two places at once, the first part was the new wrinkle, not the second. Green’s historically-dominant defense over the last few years has been predicated on his ability to be in two places at once. To guard as many people as necessary to snuff out a possession. To help and recover across whatever distance his team needed him to.

What Barnett seemed to notice was not Green helping more than normal, but him being a step slower in recovery.

Remember his second half from Game 1 of Round 1 last year?

Green is not doing things quite like this anymore. Maybe he’s still saving a gear, but that’s unlikely given his across-the-board dominance.

Green grabbed 37 rebounds in Game 4 and Game 5 combined, and ended the series averaging 11.2 per game. He also averaged 8.0 assists, giving him playoff career highs in both categories as of this moment.

Even if Green is not the physics-defying defender he was before, he’s still elite. The Warriors posted a defensive rating of 97.2 with Green on the floor in Round 1, and 110.5 with him off.

Even his “overhelping,” if that’s what it is at times, is worth it — for now. For every easy shot his approach conceded against San Antonio, he eliminated several others. To what extent that is the case against more talented offensive teams moving forward remains to be seen.