The Golden State Warriors, even without star forward Kevin Durant for one game and coach Steve Kerr for two games, proved they were too much for the Portland Trail Blazers, sweeping their foes out of the playoffs in four games.A big part of the Warriors' success came not from their prolific offense, but from the defensive side of the ball, where forward Draymond Green does his best work.In fact, one play from Game 3 showed why the outspoken Golden State forward should be a lock for the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award this year.Early in the third quarter of a game the Warriors would eventually come back to win 119-113, Green showed his defensive versatility by literally defending every single Blazers player at some point, as you can see in the video below, on a play that ended with Damian Lillard missing a contested jumper:
Green was just as good defensively in Game 4, as the Warriors crushed the Blazers to finish off a four-game first-round sweep.
Even Portland coach Terry Stotts was impressed, telling ESPN.com that the Warriors proved why they should be considered title favorites moving forward:
"They came out really energized, focused. They showed their championship pedigree," Stotts said. "We were slow to react to it and we just couldn't get it going. And we didn't play nearly as well as they needed to and they showed why they're a championship team."
Green contributed 21 points, six rebounds and four assists in the Game 4 victory, doing enough offensively to complement the red-hot Stephen Curry, who led all scorers with 37 points.
Golden State assistant coach Mike Brown, who was filling in for Kerr as Kerr continues to deal with the fallout from a back surgery a couple of years ago, said he was impressed with how well the Warriors played in every aspect of the game:
"That was unbelievable. Our guys were locked in on both ends of the floor. I wish I could say this one thing or that one thing was really good but everything we tried to do, we tried to do it on a high level," Brown said. "It was fun to watch. Fun to be a part of."
Now, the Warriors will get some well-deserved rest as they await the winner of the Utah Jazz-Los Angeles Clippers first-round series, which is currently tied at two games apiece.
If Green and Curry are clicking and Durant is healthy, though, it won't matter who the Warriors are playing - they'll make quick work of anyone.