Golden State Warriors veteran Draymond Green is apparently hoping that the Boston Celtics complete an unprecedented comeback over the Miami Heat, with his reasons coming from his personal perspective.
Green offered his thoughts on “The Draymond Green Show” about the Celtics’ situation and referenced the Golden State Warriors’ collapse in the 2016 NBA Finals.
“First time from 3-0, that’s an interesting one,” Green said. “That’s an interesting one. First team to come back from a 3-0 deficit. We would love to see it, wouldn’t we? Maybe I won’t have to hear about 3-1 anymore if this team comes back from 3-0. You can throw the 3-1 in the dirt, forget about it. I’m sick of it and talk about 3-0. It’d be a much better story for me personally to hear.”
The Heat have two more opportunities to close out a series in which they once held a commanding 3-0 advantage. After that third win, it was pointed out that no team in NBA history had ever come back to win a playoff series after trailing by that amount.
Even though that Warriors’ collapse to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals took place nearly seven years ago, it’s clear that the missed opportunity still gnaws at Green.
In that particular series, the Warriors held a commanding 3-1 advantage and were set to play Game 5 on their home court. Instead of celebrating a win in that contest, the Warriors watched in horror as former Heat star LeBron James led the Cavaliers to a record-setting comeback over the next three games.
The Cavaliers’ achievement marked the first time ever that a team had blown a 3-1 advantage in the finals. Green was the object of much criticism in the wake of that due to his ill-timed suspension for Game 5.
That suspension stemmed from his actions toward James in the previous contest and followed a postseason in which Green had received a series of technical fouls.
Three years later, Green made an effort to use the Cavaliers’ predicament as fuel for a Warriors team that also trailed 3-1 in the 2019 NBA Finals. Despite the attempted comparison, the Toronto Raptors, like the Cavaliers, ended up their first and only NBA title on the Warriors’ home court.
Earlier this month, Green was again haunted by James, who played a major role in ending the Warriors’ playoff run. James, now a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, helped eliminate Green and the Warriors in six games in the second-round playoff matchup.
Nervous Heat fans are currently hoping that Green’s memories about 2016 continue, something that can happen if the Heat emerge with either a win on Saturday or Monday night, if necessary.
