Draymond Green gave the Cavaliers hope. Can he take it away?

“We’re not talking about that tonight,” Kerr said. “Draymond wasn’t here, so we played without him. We didn’t play well enough to win. I’m not going into all that stuff.”

If Kerr had a nickel for every time he’s been asked about Draymond’s red-hot engine in these Finals he’d have enough for a double-shot espresso at any of Berkeley’s finest coffeehouses. And if he had Draymond’s over-caffeinated self on the court in Game 5 we’d probably all be on our way home right now. But he didn’t and we’re not, so this series goes back to Cleveland with a strange new twist on what has been a very odd finals.

We’ve had two monstrous blowouts in Games 2 and 3, and another lopsided result in the opener. Game 4 was tight and tense and should have signaled the end game if not for Green losing his cool at exactly the wrong moment. (You can debate whether LeBron baited him or disrespected him all you want. Green was on notice for his past behavior and everyone knew it. The blame lies solely with him.)

Green may not be the best player in this series and he likely cost himself a chance at Finals MVP with his suspension, but a very good argument can be made that he’s the most important player. Without Green there is no death lineup, but his absence goes far deeper. Kerr was forced to play overwhelmed backups in critical spots and rely on a center rotation that has been catastrophic at times. Without Green’s playmaking ability there was no 1-4 pick-and-roll, which has been Golden State’s bread-and-butter set.

So, yes, Draymond Green really is that important. He’s not so much a system player as the system, period, as general manager Bob Myers told me back in late January.

“Somebody would say he fits into our system or he fits into our system with Steph (Curry),” Myers told me back then. “I would say he helped make this system. He’s part of the reason the system developed. As much as he benefits from Steph, Steph benefits from him. So he’s cultivated a system on his own with his work ethic and his ability to play that we’ve embraced.”

That’s been obvious to anyone who’s paid attention during the last two years but it was dramatically reinforced in Game 5. Green has given the Cavs life, and a renewed belief that they can do what’s never been done by rallying from a 3-1 deficit in the Finals. That makes Games 6 back in Cleveland very dangerous and anything can happen in a Game 7 if it gets that far. Green put his team in this position and now it’s on him to see their way through it.

One of LeBron’s greatest strengths is his ability to read the game. At his best he doesn’t play like a man possessed, he plays like a man in total control of the situation. LeBron correctly realized that he could score at will against the Warriors without Green patrolling the back line and when he started rattling in jumpers he was completely unstoppable. Why doesn’t he play like this all the time? His wandering jump shot is one reason.

When Kyrie Irving really started to cook, LeBron wisely spent much of the fourth setting Irving up and Kyrie did the rest. LeBron later called Irving’s performance one of the greatest he’s ever seen live and while it was a marvelous shooting exhibition, James’ all-around floor game was the key difference in Game 5.

Having been fortunate enough to witness several of LeBron’s greatest postseason moments in person, I feel obligated to weigh in on some of his past performances. (Note that I was not on hand for his 48-point effort against Detroit in 2007 and those who were there swear it was the single-greatest demonstration of his talent, so I’m inclined to take their word for it.)

James not only carried Miami to the win, he completely shut down the Garden in the first six minutes and made 12 straight shots. It was surreal and everyone in the building knew it, too. Aside from the stakes, what truly separated this game from all the other was how LeBron took control and dominated from start to finish. He scored 45 of Miami’s 98 points and added 15 rebounds for good measure.

That quote encapsulates his basketball philosophy and perfectly distills his essence as a player. Can we all just pause and acknowledge one of the greatest basketball players of all time had a performance for the ages?

Much has been made of Irving’s uncanny shot making and the Warriors’ inability convert their own open looks. Irving’s night was historic: He was the first player since Wilt Chamberlain in 1970 to score 40 points on 70 percent shooting and you can be damn sure Wilt wasn’t pulling up for contested jumpers. There’s a very good chance that given the same looks on Thursday, Golden State will make theirs and Irving won’t be so unconscious. We can laugh about it being a make-or-miss league but there’s more than a kernel of truth in that cliché.

Of course, basketball is a weird game. We have come this far and this series still makes little sense from game to game and moment to moment. Shots may fall or rim out but consistent effort has been just as much of a random factor in this series. On each side a simple mantra has been laid down: Play harder than the other team and we’ll win. Whichever team does that will find itself victorious on Thursday.

The Cavs will be at home where they have been dominant and the Warriors must emerge with the kind of mentality they employed in Game 4 or they will get run back to the Bay with the Cavs hype man ringing in their ears.