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Golden State Warriors are ‘very fragile’ as they limp into Christmas game according to Draymond Green…with defending champs just 15-18 and sporting the WORST road record in the NBA
After a road trip in which the team went 1-5 and suffered blowout losses to the Knicks and Nets, the Warriors are “very fragile” according to forward Draymond Green.
Golden State claimed the Larry O’Brien Trophy about six months ago against the Celtics, but their title defense hasn’t been planned until now with a 15-18 start.
And with the team playing poorly and star Stephen Curry out with a shoulder injury, Green has admitted that morale is low in the group.
Draymond Green has called the team ‘very fragile’ after a brutal 1-5 road trip
“Right now, I think we’re very fragile,” he said Friday after practice.
‘You start going through these things and then you start believing them. Once you start believing in them, it becomes who you are. The only way to break them is to be mentally strong.’
‘You can do what you want [the recent results] being on the road versus being at home, but it’s mental. It is a team that struggles mentally. And that makes it hard to top anything else.
While Curry hasn’t played in the last four games and said this week that he’s “not close to lifting a basketball,” the Warriors were struggling early in the season, even when they were at their healthiest.
The defending champions began the season just 3-7 after a five game losing streak, and currently possess the league’s worst road record at 3-16.
Kevon Looney and Klay Thompson look dejected during a Warriors game on December 20.
In addition to Curry, it hasn’t helped that Andrew Wiggins has missed the last nine games with an adductor strain, while Donte DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green have also been sidelined with injuries.
“It’s not something that’s going to be fixed with a snap of the fingers,” Green said. ‘You have to work through these problems to get that confidence.
‘It just doesn’t show up. As much as you’d like to think, ‘Oh, we’ll be fine and this guy will come back. …’ No no no. you have to work [for] positive results, positive feelings, which ultimately give you that confidence boost.’
Stephen Curry, seen with Jordan Poole this week, has missed four games in a row
While the team still boasts a formidable offense with Curry (when healthy), Klay Thompson, Jordan Poole and Wiggins, Golden State’s defense hasn’t been up to the level of a title contender.
The Warriors are 24th (of 30) defensively in 33 games, with a tough test against the Grizzlies on Christmas.
The Grizzlies are 19-11 and second in the Western Conference at press time.