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Warriors forward Draymond Green is expected to play Saturday night when the Los Angeles Lakers and Luka Doncic come to town.

Draymond Green likely to face Lakers, Kristaps Porzingis is questionable

Warriors coach Steve Kerr said some starting lineup changes could be coming for game against Lakers Saturday night

by · The Mercury News

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SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors will play mix-and-match against a Los Angeles Lakers team that comes to Chase Center Saturday in a battle of Western Division rivals looking to stake their claim to a playoff berth.

Draymond Green is listed as probable with a left lower back injury, while Kristaps Porzingis is questionable with an illness. Green and Porzingis both practiced Friday with coach Steve Kerr keeping his intentions for a starting lineup and rotation under wraps.

The Warriors (31-28) are in the eighth playoff position in the west, with 7 through 10 qualifying for play-in games. The Lakers (34-24) have fallen to sixth place — the final playoff  berth that doesn’t include a play-in — after consecutive losses to Boston, Orlando and Phoenix.

Golden State split a two-game road swing, losing 113-109 to the New Orleans Pelicans and then beating Memphis 133-112 with both teams compromised because of injury.

The Warriors and Lakers have split two games this season, with Golden State winning 119-109 in its season opener on Oct. 21 and then losing 105-99 on Feb. 7.

“I love how hard our guys are playing,” Kerr said. “New Orleans obviously forced us into some turnovers that hurt our offensive rhythm, so we’ve got to find a way to take care of the better defenses. The Memphis game was great. Obviously they were short-handed but so were we. I liked the effort, the energy.”

Stephen Curry, Kerr said, will be evaluated Sunday for an update on his sore right knee which has cost him the last nine games.

Exactly how the Warriors will line up Saturday night is yet to be determined.

‘We definitely have questions with the starting lineup,” Kerr said. “We were consistent there for a little bit.”

The Warriors biggest challenge will be Luka Dončić, currently the NBA’s leading scorer at 32.7 points per game. Yet it hasn’t always been smooth as the Lakers transition from a LeBron James-centered team to one where Dončić assumes the lead.

Dončić has been accused of never meeting a shot he didn’t like, but curiously passed up a 3-point attempt in the waning moments against Orlando. He hesitated ever so slightly off an inbounds play with 6.7 seconds to play, then passed off to James, who was forced to take a far lower-percentage 3-point try while trying not to fall out of bounds.

Dončić , still only 26, has played in 74 games after being traded to the Lakers last season and will only get better, Kerr believes.

“He’s brilliant no matter what system he’s in,” Kerr said. “I think the Laker are still in the early iteration and in the coming years they’ll adjust the roster more and more . But it doesn’t matter if he’s with Dallas or the Lakers. He’s the same guy. He’s going to create a great shot almost every single possession or set up his teammates.”

Gui Santos, the Warriors’ 6-foot-8 forward, said he’s more business-like in approach than when facing Dončić  and James now than as a rookie. Plus, as Kerr noted, Santos has had to take on more of an offensive role with Curry out.

“Gui has become one of our shot creators,” Kerr said. “He does it in some unorthodox ways but he’s got a great sense of the game,” Kerr said.

Santos said the Warriors are well aware of the playoff ramifications and that winning Saturday night would be significant with Curry potentially returning in the near future. As for Green, there is speculation he could see a different role since the last two wins came with him out of the lineup.

“We have to read the situation,” Kerr said. “New Orleans, we found more rhythm in the second half with Dray out there than we did in the first.”

Kerr also acknowledged the challenges Green faces without Curry on the floor, calling it “internally, and that the best way to play without him is fast and that the best way to play without him is at a quicker pace.

“The faster we can play without Steph, the more likely we are to get a good shot,” Kerr said.

CELEBRINI’S RETURN: The Warriors welcomed back V.P. of player health and performance Rick Celebrini after he traveled to Italy to watch his son Macklin play for Canada in the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Rick Celebrini was gratified to see Macklin evolve into a key player for Canada as opposed to simply getting a small dose of the Olympics as a 19-year-old star who has since returned to the San Jose Sharks. The Warriors, meanwhile, were divided into good-natured “Team Celebrini” and “Team USA” factions, the latter hoping for Macklin to play well but rooting for the American team.

Mission accomplished, with Celebrini initially devastated at the defeat.

“I think he handled it the way I expected him to,” Rick Celebrini said. “At first he was inconsolable. He was upset at himself, he was upset at the results. I’m sure four years from now that will be part of additional motivation. He’s competitive to a fault. I think he’ll be able to look back in time, realize they put their best foot forward and lost to a team that was better that day.”

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