Getty Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors.
Down 2-0 in their series against the Sacramento Kings, the Golden State Warriors already had their backs against the wall. And after the incident involving Draymond Green and Domantas Sabonis in Game 2, things got even uglier.
The NBA announced that Green would be suspended for Game 3 for stepping on Sabonis’ chest after Sabonis fell to the floor while going for a rebound. Now, Golden State will be forced to avoid falling to 3-0 in the best-of-seven series without one of their stars. Head coach Steve Kerr said that the Warriors accept Green for who he is.
“There’s no stopping Draymond, you’re not going to be able to put your arm around him and calm him down and say, ‘OK, let’s move forward. It doesn’t work that way,’” Kerr said. “It’s OK, we accept Draymond for who he is and what he stands for … because, frankly, we feed on him and it helps us win.”
Kerr, acknowledging that Green has crossed the line at times, said the Warriors will always be on his side.
“I’ve said many times we don’t have a single championship here without Draymond Green. That’s the truth,” Kerr said. “He’s crossed the line over the years, and that’s part of it, you know. We will go to bat for Draymond and go to battle with him every day of the week.”
Losing Green puts the Warriors at a serious defensive disadvantage. Throughout the first two games of the series, the Kings have continuously gotten downhill and found ways to score inside. Green acted as one of the few deterrents. Without him, the Warriors will have to find new ways to get stops.
Warriors Angry About Draymond Green Suspension
As Golden State looks to keep their playoff dreams alive, the loss of Green for even a single game will play a huge role. They will be playing Games 3 and 4 at home, where they’ve been dominant all season, but it’s still going to be a challenge.
After the suspension was announced, Zach Lowe of ESPN reported that lots of people within the Warriors organization are upset about the decision and also mad about the way Sabonis has been playing so far.
“There is some anger within the organization toward the league,” Lowe said on the April 19 edition of “The Lowe Post” podcast. “There’s a sense in the organization that Sabonis is shoving people on offensive rebounds and playing with his elbows out and using the ball as a weapon on offense.”
Warriors’ Kevon Looney on Domantas Sabonis
While the team may be upset with Sabonis’ actions and angry about Green’s suspension from Game 3, some players are fine with it. Warriors center Kevon Looney, who has been guarding Sabonis, says he sees no problem with the way the Kings big man has been playing throughout the series thus far.
“I mean, as a big man, that’s what we do,” Looney said via NBC Sports Bay Area. “I think that’s pretty normal. The pushing, the shoving, the grabbing, that’s all part of protocol down there (in the paint)… Sometimes they call it, sometimes they don’t… I enjoy it.”
