Two weeks after returning from a five-game suspension for putting Rudy Gobert in a chokehold, the chronically embattled Golden State Warriors forward was ejected from a game against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday for taking a wild swing at center Jusuf Nurkić.
The play in question came in the third quarter, as Green and Nurkić jostled for position on an in-bounds play. For seemingly no reason, Green spun around and connected on a hard right to Nurkić’s face.
The play was immediately called as a foul and later upgraded to a flagrant 2, an automatic ejection.
Green will almost certainly face a fine for the incident, with a suspension depending on how the league office reviews the incident.
At the time of his ejection, Green had 2 points on 1-of-3 shooting, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 turnovers. The Warriors were leading 65-60 when he left and proceeded to lose 119-116 to fall to 10-13 on the season. This was in a game where the Suns were missing Kevin Durant.
Draymond Green is having his most Draymond Green year ever
The ejection is Green’s third of the season, out of 15 games played. So he has been ejected from 20% of the games he’s appeared in so this season.
The first ejection was easily the most mild of the three, coming after a heated confrontation with Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell. It probably wouldn’t have been notable had it been any player other than Green.
The second one was different, and perhaps the most bizarre incident in a career that is being increasingly defined by bizarre incidents. This one started with Klay Thompson and Minnesota Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels getting into an on-court grappling match, then saw Green jump in and haul Gobert out by the neck.
Even Green, who is 33 years old, acknowledged he had room to grow after the incident. Tuesday wasn’t a good sign in that regard.
The NBA specifically cited Green’s “history of unsportsmanlike acts” when announcing the following five-game suspension, and will likely do the same as the deliberate on his next punishment.
It was already a difficult season for the Warriors, who remain in 11th place in the West and on the outside of the playoff picture. Their core, including Green, is still aging and their young players haven’t picked up the slack like their brass hoped they would. Another suspension for Green obviously won’t help.
