Draymond Green bolsters DPOY case in Warriors win

Green also did a number on Damian Lillard when switched onto the All-Star guard in pick-and-roll situations. As highlighted below, there were instances when Green guarded both Antetokounmpo and Lillard in the same action, leading to defensive stops.

Green definitely has a case for DPOY, but it's not cut-and-dried. For one, he lags in most advanced defensive metrics compared to Evan Mobley, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Luguentz Dort, the three other contenders for the award. Furthermore, he has held his one-on-one matchups to 45.5 percent shooting, which is slightly higher than Mobley (44.8), Jackson Jr. (44.5) and Dort (44.5), per Second Spectrum.

Ability to guard all five positions

That said, the Warriors' seventh-ranked defensive rating (113.6) is primarily due to Green, who has once again shown the ability to guard all five positions on the floor, including centers. Green has held a forward like Paolo Banchero to 7-of-21 shooting but has equally done a number on a big man like Alperen Sengun (7-of-17) and a point guard like Kyrie Irving (4-of-13) throughout the season. 

Green's versatility on defense is his selling point.  

If the 35-year-old were to win the award, he would have passed the proverbial "eye test" among the voters, and even he knows it. After Tuesday's win, Green sounded off on his chances to win the award, explaining why people who only study numbers and don't watch the games won't be able to judge or evaluate his defensive impact.

"If you don't watch the games, you can miss it," Green said of his defensive impact. "If you just look at the stats, it don't always tell the story. It's not all about the blocks or steals; it's about what are you covering? ...People in the East Coast probably watch us four times a year. They may look at the stats and go, 'Oh Draymond averaged one steal and a block.' Those numbers don't jump off the page. But you watch me play and then ask the opposing coach what did I do to [their] offense? It's a different story."

For what it's worth, Green currently has the second-shortest odds to win the award, per FanDuel, behind Mobley.