Draymond Green left Kawhi Leonard feeling sick after the fourth quarter of the Golden State Warriors’ 126-121 win Wednesday night. It might have been more than just his stifling defense.
While Steph Curry was throwing in 30-footers, Green was throwing up from an illness. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, always a poetic artist with the English language, the former Defensive Player of the Year was “puking all over the place.” Charania weirdly specified that it was on the sidelines and back near the locker
room, meaning Green truly left it all out on the floor at the Intuit Dome.
The illness might have affect Green early. Though he played 17 first-half minutes and shot 2-for-3, he had a plus/minus of -8 with two turnovers, along with his four assists. Leonard scored 14 points, dished three assists, and didn’t commit a single turnover.
But things changed in the second half, and decidedly so in the fourth quarter. Leonard may have been distracted by the vomit all around him, or afraid of Green’s breath, which had to be terrible. He had as many points as turnovers in the final 12 minutes — two — and while he didn’t blow chunks, The Claw just plain blew.
Green was healthy enough to record a new episode of his podcast, which to this writer means he has a clear bill of health. At the very least, he hadn’t noticeably vomited on his microphone, though we won’t rule out Charania reporting that Green was fighting diarrhea throughout out the production, according to an unnamed source close to Audacy’s production team.
He should be rested and full of fluids for Friday’s big game against the Phoenix Suns, in which he’ll repeatedly sneeze on Dillon Brooks.
