Draymond Green: 'I had no clue Nemanja Bjelica could make plays like that' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: AFP – Scanpix Credit AFP – Scanpix

Long-time Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green talked to reporters yesterday, discussing the Serbian forward Nemanja Bjelica, who joined the team during the off-season.

Draymond Green

Position:PF, CAge:31Height:202 cmWeight:104 kgBirth place:Saginaw, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

Before coming to the NBA in 2015, Bjelica became the EuroLeague MVP with Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul. So his new teammate Green was pleasantly surprised to see Bjelica's playmaking ability first hand.

"I didn't know Belly could make plays like that off the dribble. I had no clue. You know, and then I've been spending a little time with him. He's like, 'Yeah, man, when I was overseas, I won EuroLeague MVP. That's what I was. I made plays, I shot the ball. And then I came here, and they just made me a spot-up shooter. So that's what I do. Like man, I know you can make plays like that.'

So that's good to see, that's good to know. Because when you've got a jump shot like that, teams are going to close out at you hard. For him to be able to put the ball on the floor and make plays..."

Draymond also talked about how Bjelica used to play with traditional big men in the NBA, thereby not getting the opportunities to get in the paint and make plays. However, Green believes that he will have more chances to do that on the Warriors.

"I think for the most part in his career, he's played with traditional bigs. So where he may not have the athleticism and get into the paint and finish over guys, that's usually something you face when you have a traditional big.

And we really don't play traditional basketball, so when he's getting in the paint, he can either finish, or you have someone rotate, and he's making the right play. And that's good to see because he didn't have these opportunities in the past."

Like what we are doing? Support us by becoming BN+ member.