Draymond Green Practices Radical Self-Honesty
The Athlete in Question
Draymond Green
The Performance
Golden State Warriors vs Portland Trailblazers - Game 3 - 2019 NBA Playoffs
The Story
Steve Kerr, the Golden State head coach, referred to Draymond Green in game three as a “wrecking ball.” He had 20 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 assists for his 7th career postseason triple double. If you watched the game on tv, you would’ve consistently heard Mike Breen, the announcer, point out how aggressive Green was during the whole game, especially in the second half.
“Draymond Green… pushing the pace”
“Once again, Draymond Green, pushing the ball up the floor in attack mode.”
“Here comes Green, attacking once again.”
Green has always been known for his energy, he just hasn’t always been able to control it. This past season, he had a career high 16 technical fouls (a type of foul usually given for strong word choices instead of physical contact).
What made this game different? How was he able to transform his negative outbursts into productive play on the court? The answer is embedded in his post-game interview.
“...I realized I got to a point where I was doing more crying than playing. I'm sure it was disgusting to watch because I felt disgusting playing that way, and I just wanted to lock back in on the game."
Before this game, he had conversations with his mother and wife about his conduct on the court. He had a moment of radical self-honesty, which is incredibly courageous, allowing him to play with a relaxed body and calm mind.
It was incredibly courageous because society sees radical self-honesty as weakness. We’re admitting something about ourselves that we don’t like, and from the outside looking in, we think there’s something wrong with that person. That they don’t have themselves under control. It’s the exact opposite though. This level of awareness allows us to make the changes we need in order to perform at our best. Honesty around our laziness leads to action. Honesty around our nervousness leads to focus. Honestly around our disgusting behavior leads to productive behavior.
Some athletes might think, “I don’t like playing relaxed. I like to feel explosive and powerful. That’s the complete opposite of relaxed.” Relaxed in this case means back to your level of neutral. On an energy scale of 1-100 for energy (1 being you’re falling asleep; 100 being you’re bouncing off the walls), where does your best performance lie? That’s when you’re in a relaxed-body calm-mind state, and you stray too far from that number, that’s when radical self-honesty can help get you back.
How To Practice Radical Self-Honesty
It’s a very simple two-step process and can be found in more detail in Warburton’s Winning System by Greg Warburton.
Admit to yourself how you’re feeling. You can do this by asking yourself a quality question like: When I tell myself the truth, how have I been thinking, feeling, and/or behaving?
Draymond might have answered this question: When I tell myself the truth, I am doing more crying than playing. I feel disgusting playing this way.
State how you DO what to perform using your power performance phrase.
Draymond answered this question: “I just want to lock back in on the game.”
Some other examples of radical self-honesty are...
When I tell myself the truth:
-I am still thinking about the turnover I made last game that cost us the W.
-I feel like I let the team down.
-I’m nervous for this upcoming presentation.
-I feel lonely.
-I’m behaving like a child.
After Draymond did this, he transformed his erratic, “disgusting”, behavior into productive and useful on-court aggressiveness. His moment of radical self-honesty led to his 7th career postseason triple double. Pretty awesome if you ask me.
It’s a simple process, but it is not easy. It’s not easy being radically self-honest with yourself because we’re admitting something we don’t like about ourselves. But the only way to get better and change is to become aware of our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. If you’re looking for more information about how to be radically self-honest with yourself, check out these resources.
Warburton’s Winning System by Greg Warburton
Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins
Accountability Mirror with David Goggins | Be your own person | Impact Theory
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