Dwyane Wade says Draymond Green’s career with Warriors must not be talked about in one way

Dwyane Wade supports Draymond Green

Green is no stranger to controversy and negative attention. From his “dirty” plays, feuds with referees, and frequent fouls, he’s racked up his fair share of enemies along the way, most of them citing his love of arg uing and talking trash as reasons for disliking him.

However, while Green is one to start a fight, Wade thinks his detractors are the ones who “want to hear their own voice.”

“If someone wants to argue about Draymond’s individual ranking, they just want to argue,” Wade said. “That’s just a person who wants to hear their voice and wants to argue.”

While Green’s offensive numbers are not gaudy, his defense and willingness to do the dirty work speak for themselves. Green fits a similar cultural archetype as Ben Wallace, Bruce Bowen, Dennis Rodman, and KC Jones, although he might very well be the best defender and enforcer the league ha s ever seen.

The Warriors’ success over his career backs that claim up.

“Draymond Green’s career should not be talked about him as an individual player,” added Wade.

“It would be talked about him as a winner, as a team player, as a leader, all these things. Like, if you’re a Draymond fan, you can’t care what Draymond is ranked as an individual player because he doesn’t go out with that individual mentality.”

Green was an integral part of team success

While Wade played second fiddle to James for parts of five seasons, he was a superstar in his own right, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Green’s success is partly thanks to lucky circumstances; playing with Curry, Durant, and Klay Thompson will certainly help, although there is a case to be made that without a “team first” guy like Green holding everything together, the Warriors’ success would have been minimal.

“He’s the best defender I’ve ever seen in my life, and he rises to the occasion,” said head coach Steve Kerr last season. “On top of being a great defender, he’s an incredible competitor. I’ve seen it for 11 years, game on the line, Draymond making a stop, it’s like having Steph Curry take the shot.”

Kerr played alongside Michael Jordan , Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, Tim Duncan, and Rodman, so he’s seen his fair share of elite defenders, and giving Green the title for the “best” ever is very telling.

While Green’s Basketball-Reference page might not show him leading the league in many stats, his trophy case at home tells a different story, and that’s what he should be judged on.