With the Warriors coming off a tough road trip, they may be without two key defenders.
Draymond Green has been ruled out of Golden State’s game against the defending champion Denver Nuggets on Wednesday at the Ball Arena for personal reasons.
In addition to being without their defensive anchor, Gary Payton II may also miss Wednesday’s game due to illness.
The Warriors are playing their third game in four days and fourth in a row on the road. After a thrilling two-point win in Oklahoma City against the Thunder, a loss in Cleveland to the Cavaliers and a win against the Pistons in Detroit, Golden State will end its current trip to the Mile High City in what is expected to be a tough one. meeting.
Of course, they would rather finish this tough road with a 3-1 win record than a 2-2 record, but that would be more of a challenge with Green out.
After leading the West for most of the 2022-23 NBA season, the Nuggets (7-1) remain atop the Western Conference with just one loss on the season. The Warriors (6-2) are not far behind in third place.
Green, 33, missed the Warriors’ preseason and the first two regular season games with an ankle injury suffered shortly before the start of training camp.
In six games this season, Green is averaging 10.3 points on 46.7 percent shooting, 5.0 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 0.8 steals in 25.9 minutes.
With or without Green, and possibly without Payton II, the Warriors will rely on their “Numbers Court” as they claim back-to-back titles.
