Draymond confident Warriors would beat Lakers in play-in game originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
There remains a lot of unknown for the No. 6 through No. 10 seeds in the Western Conference as teams fight for their playoff lives with three games remaining in the 2023-24 regular season.
But there is one thing Draymond Green is sure about, and that is that his Warriors would defeat LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers if the teams meet in the NBA Play-In Tournament.
“We’ve beaten the Lakers the last couple of times,” Green said on Wednesday’s “The Draymond Green Show” episode. “The Lakers are always a tough matchup, having [Anthony Davis] on the court always makes a difference. I am very confident if we played them in a play-in situation that we could win — that we will win.
“In saying that, anytime you’re playing against AD and Bron in a one-game situation, it’s tough. They’re always more than capable of putting a great night together, and it’s more likely in a one-game situation that they’re going to put a great night together than a bad night. So it’s always tough.
“Nonetheless, that is where we are and I have total confidence that we can take advantage of some things that they do and win the game if that is the case.”
Green’s confident claim certainly has some recency bias, and rightfully so.
Not only are the Warriors playing some of their best basketball following an up-and-down season, but Golden State also has won its last three contests against Los Angeles.
The only game the Warriors lost to the Lakers this season was their first encounter in January in a 145-144 double-overtime loss at Chase Center.
But Green believes the momentum will carry over into a potential postseason run-in with his good friend James and the Lakers.
Los Angeles (45-35) currently is the No. 9 seed while Golden State (44-35) is in the 10th and final play-in spot. If things remain the same by Sunday night, a do-or-die game could be in store for the Western Conference rivals.
