With just under three minutes to go and the Warriors leading by 25 points, Steve Kerr put the end of the bench into the game.
Somehow, with the game in control, rookie Jordan Bell found a way to produce the highlight of the night.
After Bell got a piece of Dwight Powell's shot, JaVale McGee batted the ball ahead. With no one in front of him, the rookie tossed the ball off the backboard and threw down a dunk. The sequence left his Warriors teammates flabergasted. But Bell may have broken an unwritten rule about showboating in a blowout game.
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After the game, Draymond Green was not having it with possible criticism of Bell.
"Listen man, when you get on the basketball floor, I don't care if you get out there with two minutes to go up 25 or with two minutes to go down 25, somebody is evaluating you. So you gotta play the game just like it's tied up or if you're up four or if you're down four. You gotta play the game the same way. Somebody is evaluating you. So if you want to throw it off the backboard, feel free and dunk the ball. He got an And One. It was a great play. So, I got no message for him. Do what you do. Play basketball. That's what he did. I don't get all up into the whole 'Ah man, they're winning by this much, that's bad.' Says who? Dunk the ball. What's the difference between if he threw it off the backboard and dunked it as opposed to grabbing it and dunking it? It's a dunk," Green told reporters in Dallas after the Warriors' 133-130 win.
Green was then asked what he thought of the play, regardless of game situation.
"Great play. Great play. Amazing. Did you see it? It was dope. He got an And One too. He missed the free throw though. We gotta talk about that. That's my message for him. Make the free throw," Green said.
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Kerr reportedly apologized to Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle after the game. Green commented on that.
"Steve's the coach. I'm not. That's not my problem," Green said.
Draymond wasn't the only member of the Green family defending Bell. His mom, Mary Babers-Green was on Twitter defending the rookie.
https://twitter.com/BabersGreen/status/922660243921874945
