Basketball player punished indefinitely after slamming opponent in the face
The NBA suspended Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green indefinitely today, less than 24 hours after he slapped Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face and received a Flagrant 2 foul and expulsion.
According to the league, the penalty imposed by operations chief Joe Dumars is effective immediately. This is Green’s second suspension of the season.
“He will be required to meet certain league and team conditions before he returns to play,” the league stated in a statement.
The National Basketball Association said that “this outcome takes into account Green’s repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts” .
The Warriors did not issue a comment on Wednesday, but stated Green’s ban would be discussed during tomorrow’s shootaround in Los Angeles before a game against the Clippers.
Green, a member of four Warriors championship teams, was dismissed for the 18th time in his career, the most among active NBA players.
Green and Nurkic fought for position in the baseline corner as the Warriors inbound the ball near their own bench early in the third quarter of a 119-116 loss at Phoenix. Green appeared to slide slightly before pivoting around and striking Nurkic in the face with his right arm.
Nurkic immediately went to the ground and remained down for a little moment before rising to continue playing.
“That had nothing to do with basketball,” stated Nurkic. “I’m just out there trying to play basketball.”
The NBA punished Green for five games after he put Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert in a headlock during an argument in November.
An indefinite suspension has scant precedent. Washington guard Gilbert Arenas was suspended indefinitely by then-Commissioner David Stern in 2010 for carrying weapons into the team locker room. Arenas received a 50-game suspension after Stern stated that “his ongoing conduct… led me to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game.”
Green took a leave of absence from the 2022 NBA champions during training camp last season in what coach Steve Kerr dubbed a “mutual decision” after severely punching then-teammate Jordan Poole in the face. There were no injuries to either player.
When new Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy took over after the season concluded, he stated that he was dedicated to keeping Green, who eventually received a new US$100 million, four-year contract in late June. Kerr has always praised Green’s feisty, edge-of-your-seat style of play, but it will be intriguing to see how both sides handle this latest discipline.
Green was suspended for a Game 3 playoff triumph against the Sacramento Kings last spring after standing on Domantas Sabonis’ chest during a Game 2 loss. The Warriors were the first defending champion to win a postseason series after falling behind 2-0.
In November 2018, Golden State punished Green for one game for unsportsmanlike behavior. In the final seconds of a 121-116 overtime loss to the Clippers on the road, Green grabbed a rebound and, with Kevin Durant begging for the ball, dribbled the length of the court into traffic and lost possession as the Warriors failed to get a shot off. Durant was noticeably irritated on camera, and the two got into it later.
Green was suspended in 2016 for a pivotal Game 5 loss to LeBron James and the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals after accruing too many flagrant fouls that season. The Warriors were defeated in seven games. For the game Green missed, then-GM Bob Myers sat next door to Oracle Arena at the Oakland Coliseum.
Green, a second-round pick out of Michigan State in 2012, is averaging 9.7 points, 5.8 assists, and 5.5 rebounds in 15 games this season. He has recently stated how much better the chemistry is this season. On draft day, Poole was traded to Washington for Chris Paul.
Green stated that it was “difficult to come to work” and “not fun.”
“Last year we had an awful team as far as chemistry goes — pathetic,” he went on to say. “When you look back at last year, you think, ‘Ah man, this team hasn’t lost a Western Conference series under Steve Kerr.’ Then something happens. The main issue is that our chemistry was terrible.”
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