The Golden State Warriors shocked the NBA by snatching the #1 seed from OKC last night. However, what wasn’t much of a surprise was Draymond Green picking up a technical foul for tussling with Luguentz Dort late in the fourth quarter.
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Even though Green was off-the-ball, Dort, a straightjacket of a defender, picked up the 2017 DPOY from full-court. The two bumped shoulders for the entire length of the court.
Once they reached the paint, OKC’s #5 secured an inside position against Green. Soon enough, Draymond’s arms started flailing as a stray elbow hit Dort’s face, forcing the officials to blow their whistle.
Green was slapped with a technical foul for an “unsportsmanlike flail” after he hit the OKC player’s face. On the other hand, the officials also recognized that Dort had initially fouled Green by wrapping his hands around him. So play resumed with a shot for OKC with Golden State retaining possession.
Draymond Green was given a technical foul after this altercation with Lu Dort where Draymond hit him in the face after getting tangled up.
Thoughts? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/SedVE4a8i3
— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) November 11, 2024
For Warriors fans, the whole situation was quite reminiscent of Green’s tussle with Jusuf Nurkic last season, which forced him to miss over 12 games after the NBA suspended him indefinitely.
Last night, Draymond got lucky in Oklahoma as he was allowed to finish the game. The altercation with Dort could have easily warranted a flagrant or an ejection if the Canadian guard had attempted to sell the contact.
The foul called on Dort would prompt Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault to use his coach’s challenge on the play. However, the challenge was unsuccessful.
“Anytime a guy gets hit in the head with an elbow, whether it’s a flail or whatever, that’s a replay trigger…If there is a guy getting hit in the head like that, they’ve got to go look at it. And if they did, they would have found a technical foul. I would have had a challenge in my pocket,” the 39-year-old explained post-game.
That play might have cost the Thunder the game as they were unable to challenge an out-of-bounds play two minutes later. It created some justified frustration for Daigneault, but for Draymond Green, it seemed like just another day at the office.
Green has ‘flailed’ on multiple occasions
In December of 2023, Draymond was ejected for the third time that season after hitting Jusuf Nurkic in the face. Given how his aggressive fouling was becoming a trend, the NBA was forced to suspend the four-time champion indefinitely.
Green was required to undergo counseling and prove to the league that he could control his behavior. However, in February, when the Warriors and Suns faced off again, Nurkic commented, “It’s sad. He didn’t learn anything. Just a matter of time. He’s going to hit somebody else again. Take back everything I said. He don’t deserve a chance.”
Unfortunately, it’s more than a second chance for Green, who has had a long history of unsportsmanlike conduct. He had earned a five-game suspension before the Nurkic incident after putting Rudy Gobert in a headlock, which was a year removed from him punching his own teammate, Jordan Poole.
The #23 has tallied double-digit technical fouls every season for the past 10 years. Green picked up his first technical on opening night with the second one coming yesterday against the Thunder. Though he vowed to keep his technicals under 10 this season, Green is on pace to record 16.
