Draymond Green will be teamed up with Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard on Team USA's Tokyo Olympics roster, and the Warriors star made sure to shout out the Oakland native for how he embodies his hometown as one of the NBA's top players.
"Obviously one of the best shooters in our game, one of the most prolific scorers in our game, and also an incredible leader and an incredible point guard," Green told reporters during a Thursday media availability following Team USA practice. "From Oakland, and he embodies that, he carries that, he carries that toughness. And that makes all the difference when he takes the floor."
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Lillard has risen from an unheralded prospect out of Oakland High School, to a scoring machine at mid-major Weber State in Utah, to a six-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA Second-Team selection in Portland.
The soon-to-be 31-year-old will be making his first appearance in the Olympics with Team USA, while Green will be looking to defend the gold medal he earned during the 2016 games in Rio De Janeiro.
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Green initially was asked what it was like to "try" to guard Lillard, which the former Defensive Player of the Year award winner took exception to.
Golden State Warriors
Draymond has asserted himself as the NBA's best defender ever in the past, and doesn't believe there is a player in the league he can't defend.
Lillard does present one of the greatest challenges of any offensive player in the league on a nightly basis. Luckily for Team USA and not so luckily for the rest of the world, he and Draymond will be wearing the same uniform in Tokyo later this month.