When Will Barton and DeMarcus Cousins exchanged their verbal jousts midway through the third quarter of Game 2, the most experienced NBA player on Denver’s roster was there to clean up the mess.
Longtime veteran Jeff Green got into Barton’s face and then turned his attention to Cousins only moments later.
In that moment, as the Golden State Warriors were pummeling Denver’s defense, exposing a withering offense, and running the Nuggets into the ground, Green implored his teammates not to fracture as they barreled toward a 2-0 deficit in their first-round playoff series.
“We have to try to finish off in a productive way, and that’s not breaking apart the ship,” said Green of what he shared in that fragile moment.