Sam Amick

USA TODAY Sports

SACRAMENTO – It was all roses and warm smiles last July, when Kevin Durant sat in that Hamptons house listening to his future Golden State Warriors teammates and coaches discuss why he’d be such a perfect fit for their franchise.

That’s the inherent nature of the recruiting process, with the Warriors one of six teams wooing Durant in free agency back then in the hope that he would help them win it all. But as we were reminded last week, when Durant and Draymond Green had a heated discussion about a late-game situation in a loss against the Memphis Grizzlies, the time for ego boosting is gone now that the title push is in full effect. With three months to tinker before the postseason arrives, and the memory of their NBA Finals failing last June still fresh, these are the kinds of tough talks that might help them maximize all that talent on the loaded roster.

How can Durant dominate without back-to-back MVP Stephen Curry losing the magical touch that made him so great? How does sharpshooter Klay Thompson factor in on a nightly basis? Questions like these are still in the process of being answered.

As Green discussed with USA TODAY Sports, it’s that distinction that makes this season different than the last for the Warriors. While they’re just games off their pace from the historic 73-win campaign (32-6 v. 36-2), there’s still a level of uncertainty about how the pieces fit that has made this a whole new task. Even the smallest weaknesses could be huge come playoff time, meaning Green won’t be biting his tongue anytime soon.

Q: So last year was a circus – just an absolute show every single night. I feel like this year is a whole lot more learning and tinkering …

A: “Last year we were trying to win every single game every night. This year we’re trying more things out, we’re trying different combinations, we’re playing more guys trying to figure out what works, and I think it’s good. I think it’s been good for us. And yet, we’ve still been able to win at a really high rate. We’re definitely trying things out, trying to figure out what works.

“It’s been experimenting with lineups, experimenting with substitutions patterns. It’s been experimenting with plays – down the stretch, experimenting with plays, seeing what works. It’s been a ton of experimenting. Last year, was ‘We know what to do. Go do it. We know who’s coming in.’ It’s been a ton (compared to last season) – it’s really been all experimenting, for the most part. I mean obviously you have your parts in the game where it’s not, but I’d say at least half a game – including subs, and lineups, and play calls – has been experimenting.

Q: Is that situation with Kevin (where Green wanted him to run pick-and-roll when Durant instead took the isolation approach) another growth experience, in that regard? It seemed like he was completely straight when it came to you guys having that kind of communication.

A: “Absolutely. That’s what makes him special. That’s what makes him an incredible star. He’s a megastar. You know, most people would look at how you’re saying something and not what you’re saying. He looks at what you’re saying, and not how you’re saying it. Obviously he knows me very well. We have a great friendship, and so he knows what type of person I am. He knows how passionate I am about everything, and everything I say.

“I think everybody tried to blow it out of proportion, which was funny. And yet, I saw something that said, ‘Draymond and Kevin gets into an argument,’ or something. I don’t know if you can really get into an argument where one person is talking and the other guy is saying, ‘What would you rather me have done here?’ And I’m like., ‘You go into the pick and roll – blasé, blasé, blasé,’ and he’s like, ‘(Ok), I got you. Alright, cool. Let’s go.’”

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Q: Do you second guess the way you’re getting your message across in that moment at all?

A: “No, not at all, because that’s the heat of the moment right there. That’s what being teammates is about. And if you have to second guess talking to a teammate, it’ll never work anyway. I didn’t for one second think, ‘Oh no, I have to tone it (down).’ Not at all. Number One, we’re super close – super close.”

Q: How close are we talking?

A: “It’s hard to really say how close. But (close) like building a relationship far beyond basketball, like hanging with each other in the summer close. It’s beyond that. It’s a special thing. It’s a special relationship. Like I said, if we have to question (the way they talk to each other)…

“(The communication) is vice versa (too). He comes up to me all the time, ‘(Draymond), you on (expletive),’ and I’m like, ‘Ok, I got you. I got you.’ If you’ve got to second-guess talking to a teammate, what you have will never work.”

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Q: Did you guys have to discuss that situation at all afterward?

A: “No. We discuss what we want to do in those situations. But we didn’t discuss who’s talking to who, or how you’re talking. Number One, it’s not like I’m sitting there saying, ‘What the (expletive) you doing, mother(expletive)?’ No, I wasn’t saying that. And Number Two…we need to worry about getting better, and that was a moment where we’re teaching each other and get better. We grow from it. “

Q: He spent a long time playing a certain way (in Oklahoma City). Any part of you feel like you guys need to get some of those habits out?

A: “At the end of the day, you do something for so long that’s what you’re accustomed to. You have to grow out of it, out of anything. In saying that, part of the reason we wanted him is that there are times when we need that. So like when we talked about it, and said, ‘What do we want to do (offensively) there?’ At the end of the day, we need that (iso approach) sometimes. And you never want to forget that, so that’s important.”

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