The NBA decreed this Wednesday the “indefinite” suspension of Draymond Green, one of the figures of the Golden State Warriorsafter hitting the head on Tuesday Jusuf Nurkic (Phoenix Suns) and be sent off for the third time this season.
«Green’s suspension will begin immediately. He must meet certain conditions of the league and the team before playing again,” Joe Dumars, executive vice president of basketball operations for the NBA, advanced in the text.
The temperamental power forward, 33 years old, barely completed his birthday on November 28. five-match ban which he received for violently grabbing Rudy Gobert by the neck during a brawl in the duel against the Minnesota Timberwolves on November 14.
According to renowned ESPN journalist Adrian Wojnarowski, the NBA decided not to decree this time a specific number of suspension games so that Green “takes the time he may need to address the challenges he faces.”
Green, his agent Rich Paul, and Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. are expected to meet Thursday to begin discussing a plan for advice and support for the player, Wojnarowski said.
Tuesday’s ejection came during a Warriors throw-in. Green, the active player with the most ejections, was being defended by Jusuf Nurkic when he turned around and hit him in the head, sending the Bosnian to the ground.
The referees declared a flagrant foul 2 on Green, who ran to the locker room amid the jubilation of the Phoenix crowd.
Unlike other expulsions, Green apologized to Nurkic that same night for the blow and assured that it was not intentional.
“He was pulling my hip and I turned to take the foul and made contact with him,” he explained. «I apologize to Jusuf. “It was not my intention to hit him.”
«I don’t know what’s going on with him. “Personally, I feel like he needs help,” Nurkic said on his behalf. «I’m glad he didn’t try to strangle me.. At the same time, this has nothing to do with basketball.”
Before the loss of Green, the Warriors led 60-65 in the third quarter but the Suns soon took the lead and won 127-125 despite not having Kevin Durant.
“I haven’t seen the replay yet but losing Draymond today was huge,” coach Steve Kerr said of the ejection. «We need him, he knows it. We have talked about it and he has to find a way to maintain his composure and be there for his teammates.
Green has had numerous incidents in his career since arriving in the NBA as a second-round pick in the 2012 Draft.
Among those altercations is the punch he punched his then teammate Jordan Poole a year ago during preseason training, for which he did not receive any sanction from the Warriors.
Green’s most costly penalty for his team occurred during the 2016 Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers for a hit against LeBron James. The power forward was suspended for one game and his team, which dominated the tie 3-1, ended up losing the title in the seventh game.
Currently, Golden State is going through serious problems with its game and results and is in eleventh place in the Western Conference, out of the playoff spots.
2023-12-14 02:22:01
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