The Warriors are not taking Draymond Green’s suspension well.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski described the team as “livid” with the decision to ban Green for a pivotal Game 3 after the forward stomped on Kings star Damontas Sabonis during Golden State’s Game 2 loss Monday night, which gave Sacramento a 2-0 series lead.
“One word: livid. They certainly didn’t agree with the one-game suspension and were certainly surprised about that,” Wojnarowski said on “Get Up!” on Wednesday morning.
“They are going to have to live with it. There is nowhere to go with an appeal in this situation.”
The incident led to Green getting a flagrant 2 and ejected from the game.
Sabonis, who received a technical, grabbed Green’s foot, and some have argued Green had no other choice with the way he responded.
The NBA did not see it that way, however, and pointed to Green’s status as a “repeated offender” as the reasoning behind the decision.
“Here’s what it came down to: Excessive and over-the-top actions, conduct detrimental and a repeat offender,” NBA Executive VP Joe Dumars told ESPN. “That’s what separates this where you end up with a suspension.”
Dumars was asked if the Warriors being down 2-0 in the series, and essentially having their season on the line in Game 3 on Thursday night, played any factor in the thought process.
“You know what the situation is, but you have to set that aside and look at the facts in front of you…Repeat offender weighs as heavy as anything,” Dumars told the site.
ESPN noted that Green has 163 career technical fouls, 17 ejections and now four suspensions in a career that also includes four NBA championships with Golden State.
Green was famously suspended during the 2016 NBA Finals for hitting LeBron James in the groin near the end of Game 4, leading to a one-game suspension that opened the door for the Cavaliers to rally from a 3-1 deficit in the series.
The league met with Sabonis, Green and members of both organizations before reaching the decision late Tuesday night.
The play occurred in the fourth quarter with the Kings leading 91-87.
Sabonis when up for a rebound and landed hard on the ground, at which point he wrapped his arms around Green’s right leg.
When Green broke free, he came down forcefully with his foot on Sabonis’ chest.
Sabonis suffered a bruised sternum and is questionable for Game 3.
After getting ejected, Green egged on the rowdy Kings crowd.
“That was some extra onto it that he didn’t need to do,” Dumars said. “Not helpful.”
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