Draymond Green now all-time Warriors triple-double leader

 

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The Warriors are 31-8, leading the NBA in winning percentage as well as in multiple important stat categories, and as good as expected. Draymond Green continues to be one of their key contributors. He’s described as a role player, but if a “superstar role player” is a real thing, Green is that. And he just crossed an amazing milestone, becoming the all-time Warriors franchise leader in triple-doubles, despite only being in his mid 20’s. For more, here’s NBC Sports Bay Area reporting:

Few guys in the NBA are as good as Green is at sensing what his team needs and finding a way to deliver it. Which is why he is, at [age 27], already the Warriors all-time leader in triple-doubles.

His 21st came Thursday night in a 124-114 win over the Rockets. The Warriors were without Kevin Durant, so Green provided 17 points and 14 rebounds. With Stephen Curry spending a fair amount of time at shooting guard, the Warriors needed another playmaker. So Green dropped 10 assists.

Add it all up, and he’s the franchise leader in a category that illustrates versatility. The Warriors are 21-0 when Green posts a triple-double.

“It’s not something I ever thought about or thought would happen, especially not playing much my first two years,” Green said. “It’s kind of crazy. But it’s definitely something to be proud of.”

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Gary Harris scoring big for Nuggets

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The Nuggets are 20-17 this season, good for sixth in the Western conference, narrowly ahead of the Trail Blazers and Pelicans. A solid record, considering they’ve been without new addition Paul Millsap for much of the season. Leading the team in scoring this season has been guard Gary Harris at 16.6 ppg. As for what he’s been producing lately, here’s the Denver Post reporting:

Gary Harris went 9-of-10 from the field in Wednesday’s first quarter against the Suns, unleashing a combination of “easy” cuts and finishes, jumpers from all over the floor and transition buckets.

So when Nikola Jokic glanced up at the scoreboard and saw 20 points next to Harris’ name, any initial surprise quickly subsided.

“I was like, ‘What?! That’s a lot,’ ” Jokic recalled after the game. “You see how he’s aggressive. That’s how he’s supposed to be.”

That was the start of the latest offensive gem for Harris, who went a blistering 14-of-17 from the floor Wednesday night to tie his career-high with 36 points. And that offensive gem was the latest example of the fourth-year guard’s blossoming offensive repertoire, which is now stretching well beyond his reputation as an outside catch-and-shoot threat and benefactor of backdoor passes from Denver’s big men.

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Dennis Smith Jr doing big things for Mavs

Judging by their season records, the Mavericks (13-26) and Bulls (13-25) are two of the less potent teams in the league. But a glance at recent play suggests that it’s worth looking a bit deeper: The Mavs play solid basketball these days when rookie Dennis Smith Jr is healthy and on the floor, and the Bulls have been a much better squad ever since Nikola Mirotic returned to action. They two teams face each other tonight. For more, here’s the Dallas Morning News:

The Mavericks have won five of eight since Dennis Smith Jr. has returned from injury. The Bulls are 10-5 since Nikola Mirotic returned from injury. He’s averaged better than 18 points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes per game during that run.

“He’s one of the best plus-minus guys in the league since then,” Mavericks’ coach Rick Carlisle said. “It’s really changed their team. They were playing well but losing a lot of close games until then. He’s just given them more juice, more scoring, he’s a deceptive rebounder and the efficiency is there. With him and (rookie Lauri) Markkanen, you got two of the stretch fours in the game. And they’re really good at what they do.”

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