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Draymond Green congratulates Raptors coach Nick Nurse on winning the NBA championship. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
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Toronto Raptors’ Norman Powell (24) and Pascal Siakam (43) celebrate their 114-110 win over as Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) walks off the court after Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. The Raptors won the NBA Championship by defeating the Warriors 114-110. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
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Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) is comforted by his girlfriend Hazel Renee after being defeating by the Toronto Raptors in Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. The Toronto Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors 114-110 to win the NBA championship. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
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OAKLAND, CA – JUNE 13: Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) fights for the ball against Toronto Raptors’ Pascal Siakam (43) in the fourth quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
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OAKLAND, CA – JUNE 13: Toronto Raptors’ Serge Ibaka (9) scores a basket against Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) in the fourth quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
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Toronto Raptors’ Kyle Lowry (7) hits a jumper against Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) in the first quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
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OAKLAND, CA – JUNE 13: Golden State Warriors’ Andre Iguodala (9) and Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) fight for a loose ball against Toronto Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard (2) in the fourth quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
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Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) dunks the ball in the second quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019.jf
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Golden State Warriors’ Klay Thompson (11), Draymond Green (23), Andre Iguodala (9) and Alfonzo McKinnie (28) celebrate in the second quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
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Toronto Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard (2) tries to control the ball as he’s guarded by Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) during the second quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
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With the team losing, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, Draymond Green (23) and Stephen Curry (30) talk during a timeout in the fourth quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group)
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OAKLAND, CA – JUNE 13: Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) dunks the ball in front of Toronto Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard (2) in the second quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
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Toronto Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard (2) and Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) discuss the last play of the game with the referee during the fourth quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. The Raptors won the NBA Championship by defeating the Warriors 114-110. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
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Golden State Warriors’ Andre Iguodala (9) gestures to Draymond Green (23) after Green passed the ball to Iguodala for a dunk during the second quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group)
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Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) drives to the basket against Toronto Raptors’ Serge Ibaka (9) and Kawhi Leonard (2) in the first quarter of Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, June 13, 2019. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
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OAKLAND — Only three players in NBA history now have more playoff triple-doubles than Draymond Green. Magic Johnson has 30. LeBron James has 23. Jason Kidd has 11. That’s it.
Green, in the Warriors’ season-ending loss in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, posted his 10th career postseason triple-double and sixth of these playoffs.
Yet the future first-ballot Hall of Famer’s 11 points, 13 assists and whopping 19 rebounds in Golden State’s 114-110 loss to the first-time NBA champion Toronto Raptors weren’t enough on Thursday night. Instead of leaving the Oracle Arena court for the last time celebrating his all-around prowess and flying to Toronto for Game 7, Green snaked his way through the masses congratulating Raptors players and coaches with his ring-less season over, and possibly the Warriors dynasty as we know it, too.
Of the four best players on this Warriors juggernaut, it’s possible only two play next season. Kevin Durant ruptured his Achilles in Game 5 and will miss the entire 2019-20 season. Klay Thompson tore his ACL in Game 6 and might, too. They might not both be Warriors, anyway, as both enter unrestricted free agency next month.
That leaves Stephen Curry and Green as the two remaining healthy cornerstones under contract with the team next season, and Green now rises from fourth-best player to second-best on a Warriors team suddenly a shell of the beast it’s been in recent years.
“I think everybody thinks it’s kind of the end of us, but that’s just not smart,” Green said. “We’re not done yet. We lost this year. Clearly just wasn’t our year, but that’s how the cookie crumbles sometimes. But yeah, I hear a lot of that noise, ‘It’s the end of a run’ and all that jazz. I don’t see it happening though. We’ll be back.”
That quote came before Green knew Thompson tore his ACL. He might still say the same after the fact.
The reality, however, is that these dynastic Warriors will take a hiatus at the very least. Best case scenario is that hiatus only lasts one year before Durant and Thompson return to all-star form with the Warriors in late 2020. Worst case is both Durant and Thompson leave in free agency, then return to all-star form with other teams in two seasons. Most likely case is the Warriors return to their dynasty’s roots – Curry, Thompson and Green, with no Durant – in the 2020-21 season with Durant expected to leave in free agency either this year or next.
The one certainty is Golden State will be without Durant and Thompson for most of next season, if not all of it, and because of that Green’s role will be magnified. He’s always been this dynasty’s emotional leader, but now he’ll have to be more to keep the Warriors relevant. As their season ended prematurely he showed, again, that he can be more.
Green skied for every missed shot in his zip code. He floated perfect lobs to Andre Iguodala for thunderous slams. He even sunk a 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter, which was just about the only uncharacteristic part of Green’s game Thursday night.
“Draymond was fighting like crazy all night,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
That’s who Green is. He fights like crazy every night. Because of it, the Warriors are in good hands, even if Green being their second-best player means they’re far from championship contenders.
At the very least, the Warriors won’t be absent championship spirit as long as Green dons their jersey, even if actual title hopes are faint without Durant and Thompson. Game 6, and every playoff game preceding it, showed just as much.
“We know what this team has been made of all along,” Green said. “I said it over and over again. The pretty offense will always be the story line, but this team, a ton of heart. Everybody that steps on that floor displayed a ton of heart, so it’s no shocker to us that we continue to fight.”
And continue to fight Green will, as the other Warriors follow his lead, regardless of who’s on the floor next season.
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