Today, the Warriors defeated the Lakers 119-109 away in the season opener. After the game, Warriors forward Draymond Green was interviewed.
Talking about Lakers forward James, who was absent from the game due to right sciatica, Green said: "Old man LeBron is sitting on that big Phil Jackson chair."
He was referring to the high-backed chair that Phil Jackson, one of the greatest coaches in NBA history, often sits on due to back problems.
"It's always a different feeling when he's not on the court. Obviously, we've played a lot with Luka, and Luka is a very good player. But LeBron is LeBron, and our matchups over the years have always been exciting. So this feels very strange. He won't miss a lot of games, let alone the opener. Because It's weird not seeing him on the court, and you look out and see him sitting there in street clothes. But that's why you brought Doncic in, because he's a big player, and he showed that tonight. "But I've been through the injuries that LeBron is going through, and I wouldn't wish that on my biggest enemy. You'll suffer from it every single day, and your legs and hips will start to twitch when you sit down. You stand there talking to someone and you feel pain going down your leg and cramping. So, I've been through that. I wish him a speedy recovery. There's no real timetable for recovery from this injury, you just keep trying, keep pushing and see how far you can get back. It's a really bad injury. I definitely want to wish him a speedy recovery. The young man Tre Mann in the Hornets also suffered this kind of injury last season. This matter is no child's play. So wish him a speedy recovery and we all enjoy playing against him and we don’t know how many more of these fights we have left. So, I definitely want to take advantage of these opportunities and hopefully play against him a few more times. "Green said.
In this game, Green played 28 minutes, scoring 8 points, 7 rebounds, 9 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks on 3 of 6 shots.