NBA Finals 2022 - Why the Warriors and Celtics need their big men in a big way

BOSTON — Steve Kerr has made a lot of high-pressure, large-stakes decisions during his NBA career. Like that afternoon in 1995 when he got fed up with Michael Jordan in a Chicago Bulls practice and made the choice to throw a forearm and ended up with a black eye.

The Golden State Warriors' coach had another big one with seven minutes left Friday in a vital Game 4 of the NBA Finals when he decided to pull Draymond Green out of the game. The Warriors were down five points to the Boston Celtics and in danger. It was as simple as Green not playing well and the player he went to, Kevon Looney, was.

The Warriors went on an 11-3 run over the next five minutes with Green out and they took the lead for good. Then Kerr decided to play Green only on defense as much as possible in the final minutes, once even calling a timeout to take him out of the game. In the more limited role, Green made several impactful plays and had one of his best stretches in the series as the Warriors closed out the 107-97 victory to even the series at 2-2.

On their face, these Finals look like Stephen Curry's greatness against the Celtics' youthful exuberance that will perhaps manifest itself in volume 3-point shooting and modern pick-and-roll coverage. But as this turns into a three-game series, the title might hinge on an old-school scenario: the big men.

It will come down to how Kerr manages what could end up being a prickly situation with Green on one side. And the health of Celtics defensive ace Robert Williams III, who looked like he aggravated a knee injury late in Game 4 in what has the potential to be a turning point in the series.

Both Kerr and Celtics coach Ime Udoka probably know these realities, and their willingness to punt them until later