Some games call for Stephen Curry to be aggressive. Others require Kevin Durant to put the team on his back. Others a Klay Thompson explosion. Several times this season, the Warriors have had to lean on the toughness and defensive sturdiness of the second unit.



But Saturday’s game, that was a Draymond Green-type. Because Oklahoma City had smacked the Warriors around twice. A third time would’ve certainly given the Thunder a psychological advantage. The Warriors simply couldn’t let that happen. This called for his type of fire, his passion, his relentless spirit of stubbornness.



And he made clear to his team that it would be that type of game.



“I told them this was a serious game,” Green said of his message to the team. “I let them know, ‘Bring your hard hats. Bring your hard hats.’ It’s going to be that kind of game. We can’t let them smack us around again.”



No doubt, some of this was...