One chapter in the Draymond Green saga is closing and a new one is beginning. He was reinstated by the NBA and has returned to the Golden State Warriors’ facility. Green has been away from the team for more than three weeks and is currently working to ramp himself up for game activity.
It was mid-December when he clocked Jusuf Nurkić. That was nearly a month to the day after he put his arm around Rudy Gobert’s neck and was eventually suspended for five games. The indefinite suspension for punching Nurkić wound up being 12 games. These two suspensions came after he was suspended a game during the playoffs in April. And, of course, he slugged his own teammate in fall 2022.
Physically going after four players in a span of 14 months had to be addressed. That clearly needs to stop. However, everything that Steve Kerr wants from Green is too much, too soon. On Tuesday, Kerr told the media that the Warriors expect Green to “leave the officials alone.”
Slow down, Steve Kerr. Be humble.
Yes, Green reached the 16 technical foul automatic one-game suspension for the first time in his career last season. Being suspended is never good, but that one was for a technicality. Green yelling at referees is annoying at times, but players and coaches complaining about calls is as much a part of NBA basketball as the t-shirt cannons. He just does so louder than everyone else.
The man was not suspended 12 games for screaming at referees. The punishment was levied for him repeatedly striking players on the floor. That is the act that needs correcting. Green has enough on his plate addressing that problem, because he is going to get no leeway on contact for the rest of the season. He has always had a problem of letting his limbs fly wildly.
After only a few weeks with a therapist, he is going to need all of the “serenity nows” and “woosahs” he can muster in order to keep his hands to himself while playing with his peers. If the guy needs to let off some steam by shouting at a ref, the Warriors just have to live with that. Either that, or they’re going to have to hire a “get back coach” to grab Green every time he begins to stomp after a call doesn’t go his way.
Green has appeared to be contrite on both his podcast and in his press conference on Tuesday. He said to the media that he needed this break. This break was mandated and without pay. The NBA made it clear by not only suspending him, but also having him do some counseling, that his behavior is expected to be different. Another bad incident will likely put the rest of his season in jeopardy.
His antics don’t bother me. All pro sports are made better with some live wires. Players like that give the games some extra juice, and sometimes they cross the line. When those moments happen, Courtland Finnegan pisses Andre Johnson off to the point where he gets punched in the face, and Green takes a 180 swing at Nurkić. Both of those are unforgettable moments, and don’t fans complain about how “soft” players are these days? Green spicing up the NBA gives me more value for my League Pass dollar.
I understand that he can’t be allowed to choke, stomp and punch players for my amusement. The NBA had to do something about his on-court behavior. Leagues have rules that they can’t allow players to flagrantly break.
Green was publicly shamed and sent away for a while. It will take time for him to prove that he can keep his cool on the court. He is going to have to watch his temper, but really only so much that he keeps his extremities from striking other players. I am not here to minimize anyone’s internal struggles, but that seems like a reasonable ask.
What Kerr wants is too much. Green was not even away from the team for a full month. Wholesale changes take longer than an eighth of the NBA regular-season. For this season, Kerr should just worry about Green keeping his hands to himself. Over the summer, he can have the breakthrough and realize that he does sometimes foul people and the referees are paid to blow the whistle in those moments.
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