Draymond Green on the Incredible Power of Self-Confidence for Athletes
Hate him or love him, there’s no denying Draymond Green has beaten the odds.
Though he was voted Big Ten Player of the Year his final season at Michigan State, Green saw 34 players selected before him in the 2012 NBA Draft. After he averaged just 2.9 points per game in his rookie season with the Golden State Warriors, most wrote him off as a career role player.
Well, the story has changed. Green is now a three-time NBA All-Star, a three-time NBA champion, and a three-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection. He’s on pace to become the first player in league history drafted 30th overall or later to average at least 9.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists over his career. If there’s one thing Green has never struggled with, its confidence. In a press conference ahead of the 2019 NBA Finals, Green revealed how important he believes belief is to success.
“If you’re trying to do something meaningful, if you don’t have the mindset that you are the best ever then you’ve failed already. So if you don’t have the mindset that you’re the best reporter ever then you already failed. And that has been my mindset since I can remember. That will be my mindset as long as I can remember anything—that I am the best ever at what I do. And every day that I step on the basketball floor I will strive to be that,” Green said.
“And that will give me a shot at being the best. But before you can ever reach anything you have to believe it. You don’t just mistakenly become great at something—you probably at one time or another believed that you could be great at that. And then you worked to get great at that and you reached that greatness. But you don’t mistakenly become great and then you start to believe ‘Oh man, I’m great at that!’ No, you believed that before and you worked to get that. So I always believe that and I work every day to reach that.”
Draymond Green explains greatness and being great. #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/oR4V0tq7d0
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) May 29, 2019
If Green had allowed others’ expectations to define him, he wouldn’t be where is today. But he decided to value himself higher than anyone else, and now he’s chasing his fourth NBA championship ring.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
READ MORE:
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
MOST POPULAR
Draymond Green on the Incredible Power of Self-Confidence for Athletes
Hate him or love him, there’s no denying Draymond Green has beaten the odds.
Though he was voted Big Ten Player of the Year his final season at Michigan State, Green saw 34 players selected before him in the 2012 NBA Draft. After he averaged just 2.9 points per game in his rookie season with the Golden State Warriors, most wrote him off as a career role player.
Well, the story has changed. Green is now a three-time NBA All-Star, a three-time NBA champion, and a three-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection. He’s on pace to become the first player in league history drafted 30th overall or later to average at least 9.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists over his career. If there’s one thing Green has never struggled with, its confidence. In a press conference ahead of the 2019 NBA Finals, Green revealed how important he believes belief is to success.
“If you’re trying to do something meaningful, if you don’t have the mindset that you are the best ever then you’ve failed already. So if you don’t have the mindset that you’re the best reporter ever then you already failed. And that has been my mindset since I can remember. That will be my mindset as long as I can remember anything—that I am the best ever at what I do. And every day that I step on the basketball floor I will strive to be that,” Green said.
“And that will give me a shot at being the best. But before you can ever reach anything you have to believe it. You don’t just mistakenly become great at something—you probably at one time or another believed that you could be great at that. And then you worked to get great at that and you reached that greatness. But you don’t mistakenly become great and then you start to believe ‘Oh man, I’m great at that!’ No, you believed that before and you worked to get that. So I always believe that and I work every day to reach that.”
Draymond Green explains greatness and being great. #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/oR4V0tq7d0
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) May 29, 2019
If Green had allowed others’ expectations to define him, he wouldn’t be where is today. But he decided to value himself higher than anyone else, and now he’s chasing his fourth NBA championship ring.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
READ MORE: