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Draymond 'thrilled' Warriors lost, hopes they can reverse 4th-quarter woes

Noah Graham / National Basketball Association / Getty

Draymond Green looked decidedly glum when he stepped to the podium after his Golden State Warriors squandered a 24-point lead, and yet he said he was "thrilled."

By Green's estimation, his Warriors needed that painful dose of reality delivered by the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.

"I'm actually happy we lost today because there's some things that we need to correct in order to win a championship, and that's our goal," Green told ESPN's Chris Haynes.

"So trying to win every regular-season game really don't matter. I want to see us get better each and every time we step on the floor, and I don't feel like that's been happening for the things we need to get better at. So I'm kind of thrilled that we lost because you usually make corrections when you lose."

In particular, Green wants his team to sharpen its fourth-quarter execution - a problem that has dogged the Warriors all season. They hit only 2-13 from the field and clanked seven free throws in the fourth against the Grizzlies, allowing a 19-point lead to evaporate in 12 minutes.

"Our fourth-quarter offense has been atrocious," Green said.

Those same sentiments were echoed by Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. After all, this very same pattern played out in their embarrassing loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Christmas. They had a 14-point lead in the fourth before wilting in the clutch.

"We just haven't executed very well," Kerr said. "Maybe that's something that we can do better as a coaching staff, trying to get guys in better position. We'll look at the tape and continue to experiment and try different things. But we have to close games better and execute better offensively."

All that being said, these are the minute problems of a championship contender. The Warriors hold the league's best record at 31-6 and they're mostly fine. But their goal for the regular season is to train for the postseason, where late-game execution will become crucial.

"We've got some things that we need to correct to be a championship team, and right now we're not that," Green added.

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