Warriors' Draymond Green returns from 3-game absence

SAN FRANCISCO -- Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Greenreturned for Wednesday night's game against the Chicago Bulls after missing the past three games because of a right heel injury.

Green scored seven points and added eight assists and five rebounds in 24 minutes in the 104-90 win over the Bulls.

"Having Draymond back was a big deal. He settled us down,'' coach Steve Kerr said. "Having nine instead of eight, it matters. You just have more to work with and more options."

After Monday morning's shootaround, Green said he was hopeful he would be able to play.

"It's getting better," he said. "Not great, but it's getting better."

Green said he had some inflammation in the heel but believed the injury was due in part to "wear and tear problems."

Green, who missed a week earlier this season because of a torn ligament in his finger, said these injuries were not out of the ordinary after all the minutes he has played year after year.

"It's pretty standard," Green said. "Always something going on. I think as you get older, you start to pay more attention to those bumps and bruises because you understand the body more. ... It's not that I couldn't have played, but is it the smart thing to do?"

He added: "I leave every game with bumps and bruises no matter what, but I think in certain situations with certain things, you realize what's next. Like, if I don't take care of this, I'm going to go out there, I'm going to overcompensate, and then the left knee's going to start hurting. You just kind of start to figure all that out as you get older and just becoming more in tune with yourself."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.