Golden State Warriors' Draymond Green returns to practice for first time since early January

SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green participated in his first team practice since early January on Saturday afternoon.

«It's great just to have his energy back in the gym, his voice,» Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. «He looked great, physically. So that's a very positive step for him and we'll go from here.»

Green, who has rehabbing a lower back injury since Jan. 9, did shooting drills, 5-on-0 and «a lot» of drill work Saturday.

«My progress has been tremendous,» Green said. «I think, where I am today, if you knew where I was eight weeks ago or seven weeks ago, it's night and day.»

For the first half of Green's hiatus, he was unable to do any basketball activities. He spent most of that time — once his back was in a place that allowed for physical activity — in the weight room.

«I'm stronger than I've ever been in my life,» Green said. "… I spent six weeks just sitting in the weight room working in there for four, five hours a day."

Green was cleared for basketball activity in late January, but it had all been individual work until Saturday.

He said Saturday that the timetable for his return remains fluid. He estimated on Feb. 3 that he would return in three to four weeks, but said at the All-Star Game on Feb. 20 that it would be another three to four weeks from that point.

«I'm trying to stick to as fast as I can possibly get back,» Green said. «From where I am, you feel like it's three weeks or so, but it could be five weeks or so.… It's no set thing.

»In a week and a half, it could be like my conditioning is at a level, my strength is at a level, my explosiveness is at a level where you can go back out there."

Those three things — conditioning, strength and explosiveness — are what Green and