The NBA announced late Tuesday night that Draymond Green will be suspended one game.
The news comes one day after Green was ejected from Game 2 of the Golden State Warriors series against the Sacramento Kings. After Sabonis fell to the ground and appeared to grab at Green’s foot, the veteran forward proceeded to step ok Sabonis’ chest. Referees went on to eject Green and hand Sabonis a technical foul.
You can see the incident here.
All things considered, this is shocking news that could come with significant ramifications. Not only did The Athletic’s Shams Charania report earlier on Tuesday that it was looking “unlikely” that Green would have to sit out Wednesday’s game in San Francisco, but the Warriors are already behind in the series 2-0. Now missing their best defensive player, a 3-0 deficit feels that much more likely. And we all know no team has ever crawled back to win a series when faced with that hole.
Considering Green was already ejected from a close playoff game, I truly believed the NBA would avoid administering a suspension. this feels particularly true when we factor in that Sabonis also played a role in escalating the situation.
However, the press release does clearly state that “the suspension was based in part on Green’s history of unsportsmanlike conduct.” If that isn’t Adam Silver trying to send Green a message, I don’t know what is.