Draymond Green wishes East teams would 'compete a little harder' vs. Cavs

Alec Brzezinski

Draymond Green wishes East teams would 'compete a little harder' vs. Cavs image

Draymond Green has been watching the Eastern Conference playoff race unfold, and he doesn't like what he's witnessed.

MORE: Draymond Green on Kelly Olynyk: 'I don’t respect guys like that'

The Warriors star was hoping to see the Cavaliers tested by an Eastern Conference foe before potentially squaring off against them in the Finals for a third straight year.

"I thought teams would compete a little harder," Green said Monday, via ESPN.com. "I just watched San Antonio-Houston. I like to watch good basketball. When you watch Cleveland play, you're only watching one side of the good basketball. That's kind of weak.

"I like watching a good game, not even necessarily that it's going to be a close game. I like to watch teams playing good basketball. When you watch them, you watch one team playing good basketball and everybody else do something. I don't know what that something is."

The Cavaliers have swept their first two opponents this postseason with an average margin of victory barely surpassing eight points per game. The Warriors are one game away from their second straight sweep as they take on the Jazz in Monday's Game 4.

Golden State has won by an average of 13.7 points per game during the playoffs. So why does Green think his team is different from the Cavs?

"I think Utah is still playing good basketball," he said. "Regardless if they win or not, I think we're a better team. But at the same time, they still play a good brand of basketball."

Flaky opinions aside, Green must have selective memory when it comes to criticizing the Cavs' competition. If he thinks the Spurs-Rockets is an example of a hard-fought series, and a potential road block for his own team, then he must feel the same way about the Wizards-Celtics series.

Both Boston and Washington have fought hard. They are tied 2-2, and whichever team prevails will likely give Cleveland a battle.

Green can cite as many excuses as he wants, but the Cavs have a great chance at repeating this season. If they do, it will be because they were the better team, and not because they played the Raptors instead of the Jazz.

 

Alec Brzezinski