Don’t expect Draymond Green to surrender to Victor Wembanyama in the DPOI race

Golden State Warriors a veteran Draymond Green has no plans to retire anytime soon and is still playing at a high enough level to finish second for last year’s Defensive Player of the Year, with an eye on that again. San Antonio Spurs All-Star Victor Vembanyama playing at an MVP-caliber level this season. He’s also considered an early favorite to win this year’s DPOI, but not without Green’s best effort.

Green, who won Defensive Player of the Year in 2017, is 14 years older than Wembanyama, and will not give up as he chases what would be his first DPOI award in nine years, he said, per The Athletic’s Sam Amico.

“It’s not like you just wave the white flag and say, ‘Ah man, he’s just going to win (DPOI).’ “It’s the same reason I’ve always loved playing against LeBron James,” Green said. “When you have the opportunity to go up against the best, it brings out the best in you, if you’re ready for that level of competition. It brings out the best.”

For Green, figuring out what it would take is the fun part of NBA defense, which Draymond takes extremely seriously at this stage of his career.

“For a competitor like me, how do I stop it for another year? And it’s not like you want to stop it to see (Vembanjama) do bad. But how do I keep it for another year? As a competitor, that’s the thought,” Green said. “You know this kid has his heart set on being great. You hear all the stories. You see all the work he’s put in. You see the improvements, which takes a lot of work.”

At the start of the 2021-22 season, few believed Green and the Warriors had a championship run in them. Health was a factor, as All-Star Stephen Curry returned near the end of the regular season, and Golden State found its stride when least expected.

Warriors’ Draymond Green excited for Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama

The Spurs’ 5-0 record was the best start in Spurs franchise history. While the rest of the NBA thrives, the Warriors veteran Draymond Green knows how vital defense is for a team with championship aspirations, which is one of the many reasons Green prides himself on his defensive approach.

“As someone who’s been in this race for the last 10 years or so, how do you stay in the race? How do you make it a race? How do you continue to put your mark on something in a way that a lot of people haven’t? So that immediately becomes a mindset for me,” Green said. “It’s not like, ‘Oh man, he’s going to beat him.’ Fuck him. He is clearly one of the best. And when it’s one of the best, you want to see how you stack up against it – even at 35.”

It made him laugh, he admits, when he saw the ages selected to last year’s first-team all-around defense.