Warriors: Draymond Green hyped Moses Moody up before 4th quarter start in Game 2

DALLAS — Draymond Green pulled Moses Moody aside Friday night during Game 2 of the Western Conference finals and relayed the news that he would likely get into the game at some point.

Until then, Moody had yet to play meaningful minutes in a playoff game, with all five of his postseason appearances mainly coming in the fourth quarter of blowouts. But Moody had a feeling Friday night might be his chance to make an impression on the Warriors’ brass even before Green’s chat.

Golden State had clawed back from a 17-point second-half deficit and was within two points of the Mavericks at the end of the third quarter. Damion Lee was the likely candidate to start the fourth quarter to offer some relief for the high minutes players. But Lee had fallen out of the coaching staff’s graces with a disastrous second quarter outing.

Moody got the surprising nod to start the fourth quarter for the Warriors.

Moody recalled Green telling him a couple of things to focus on, though he couldn’t quite recall exactly what the three-time NBA champion said, only that “it was good.”

Green “just said, ‘It’s time to lock in, so listen to that,’” Moody said Sunday morning after shootaround. “And that wasn’t even the words that he said, it was a lot more inspirational or motivational. When he hyped me up like that, he juiced me up and I was ready to go.”

Moody took full advantage of the opportunity.

Despite being only 19, Moody showed immense composure on the big stage and made smart plays with the ball. Moody drove through the lane before dishing the ball to Kevon Looney for an easy two-point basket that put the Warriors up 94-92 with 8:28 remaining in the game. A few minutes later, Moody thought about taking a 3-pointer at the top of the key before he went in for a layup.

Throughout the fourth quarter, Moody kept checking the scorers table anticipating that he would be pulled, but the Warriors’ ultimately kept him in the game for about 10 minutes before Jordan Poole subbed in for him.

“I was pleased with it, some defensive stops, being in the right spots, getting out there in crunch time and producing,” Moody said of his performance.

Coach Steve Kerr was also impressed by Moody, whom the Warriors picked 14th overall in the 2021 NBA draft.

“He’s just a very solid player, knows where to be on the floor, isn’t afraid to make a play, but also understands when not to make a play, which is important,” Kerr said. “He’s got good size and physicality defensively and he’s a player who can survive a series like this where there’s a lot of pick and roll and a lot of switching. We felt pretty good about him and there’s a good chance he’ll be out there tomorrow.”

Moody said having the support of Green gave him an extra boost of confidence to play his way.

“You can believe that [a] player can play… and not trust that they can perform in that situation and so given that he had faith in me to perform and not playing all game and getting in the fourth quarter of the playoff game, that means a lot,” Moody said. “I feel like he’s a good dude, real dude when it comes to that basketball stuff, he’s really smart, really prepared, so he knows the game pretty well. So when he says I can do it then might as well believe him.”

Moody still very much feels like a rookie, noting that he’s still in the “gathering information mode” and asking veterans for advice, though the nerves that come with being a newbie have since subsided.

“A lot more people [are] watching” the playoffs, he said, “but it’s just basketball and I’ve been doing that for a while now.”

His family and friends in his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, were proud to see him play so well. His mother and father who watched the game from a friend’s house shared videos of them celebrating his success.

“Everyone sent me love,” he said, “that was pretty cool.”