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Draymond Green suggests shocking change to Minnesota starting lineup

Posted on by angelo
Draymond Green suggests shocking change to Minnesota starting lineup

Playoff season can also be a season of overreaction when it comes to the NBA. One loss, and fans and media can suggest a multitude of changes. The Minnesota Timberwolves are currently in only their second Western Conference Finals in franchise history. Although their season was extremely successful, they lost the first game to the Dallas Mavericks 108-105. Game 2 will take place Friday in Minnesota. An NBA veteran who has had a lot of success during his career suggests an adjustment the Timberwolves may need to make.

Draymond Green suggests shocking change to Minnesota starting lineup

Draymond wants more Slo-Mo minutes

On his podcast “The Draymond Green Show,” Draymond Green mentioned an adjustment that might need to be made due to the Mavericks’ dynamic backcourt of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

Kyle Anderson just had his most productive game in the playoffs. In 17 minutes, the 30-year-old had his first double-digit scoring game with 11 points in 17 minutes. Anderson played just four minutes in Minnesota’s Game 7 win over the Denver Nuggets to advance to the Western Conference Finals. Green said Rudy Gobert wasn’t entirely to blame, but the decision might be to move him off the bench. He mentioned that people who disagree with his views will bring up the fact that Gobert had the best plus/minus for the Timberwolves in Game 1.

The seven-foot-one Gobert didn’t have his most productive game with 12 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in 38 minutes. The team was still +10 with him on the field. That means they were -13 in the 10 minutes he was on the bench. The only other Timberwolves player to have a positive plus/minus was Mike Conley who had a +1. For the fourth time in his career, Gobert was named Defensive Player of the Year this season. This ties him closest in league history with Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace.

History between Green and Gobert

Green and Gobert have had a long, simmering rivalry, sniping at each other when given the chance. Much of this was highlighted in this HoopsHype article. The beef was thrust into the spotlight when the world saw Green put Gobert in a headlock/chokehold on an NBA court at the start of the 2023-24 season. Green was suspended five games due to the incident. Later in the season, Green had another high-profile incident with Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic.

Green is surely entitled to his opinion on what Minnesota should do. He won four NBA titles with the Golden State Warriors. The 34-year-old won Defensive Player of the Year in the 2016-17 season and has been part of eight all-defensive teams. Many, however, may laugh at his comments because they think he is biased against Gobert. Ultimately, it is extremely unlikely that Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch will make a starting lineup change for Game 2 against Dallas.