Warriors star Draymond Green believes that Adam Silver suspended LeBron James because of the public reaction to the altercation between the Lakers star and Isaiah Stewart.
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The NBA suspended LeBron James and Isaiah Stewart for their actions during the game on Monday night, a first in the 4x MVP’s 19-year career. In an attempt to box out the Pistons center for the rebound, LeBron hit him right across his face.
Although it was unintentional, Isaiah Stewart got aggressive and went after the Lakers‘ superstar. LeBron tried to apologize to the young player but he was not ready to budge. Officials charged James with a flagrant 2 and tossed him out of the game along with Isaiah Stewart.
Upon further review of the situation, the NBA decided to suspend the 4x champion for 1 game. Isaiah on the other had received a two-game suspension for escalating the fight.
LeBron James was ejected with a flagrant 2 foul on Isaiah Stewart.
(🎥 via @SportsCenter) pic.twitter.com/PJRiGCmAQw
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) November 22, 2021
Golden State Warriors forward, Draymond Green came to LeBron’s defense. It’s quite unexpected especially due to the fact that LeBron was involved in Green’s suspension during the 2016 NBA finals.
Draymond Green explains why NBA decided to suspend LeBron James from a national TV game in MSG
In his new podcast ‘The Draymond Green Show”, the 3x champion spoke at length about the situation. He gave the Detroit center his two cents about getting involved with LeBron James, which came from personal experience.
In addition, he insinuated that going after big names in the NBA can lead to unjustified punishments because ‘that’s the world we live in’. He also firmly believes that LeBron’s actions in that game did not call for a suspension especially after the ejection.
“If you didn’t think LeBron deserved the suspension were you surprised then? Cause I feel like a lot of people were surprised that he got suspended for a game. Especially considering the game he’s gonna miss is a National TV game at Madison Square Garden.”
“You know it I am not surprised that he got suspended and here’s why. Adam Silver, if I’m not mistaken, has publicly said something along the lines of the league judge’s reactions on social media and everywhere else when they are um deciding whether a suspension will happen,” said Draymond.
His analysis of the situation is spot on. With LeBron’s suspension the league sort of tried to make a statement. The public reaction to the fight definitely played a huge role in the decision by Adam Silver.
It’s a little too late to argue about the suspension, but hopefully, the league looks into the same. Having someone like LeBron James miss one of his last few games at the Garden is a shame, for the fans and the player alike.