The playoff atmosphere is supposed to be an intense environment and give players wriggle room to show that intensity without having to be worried about suspensions or ejections. Draymond Green‘s actions in Game 2 warranted him being ejected, but they were not unprovoked. Domantas Sabonis grabbed Green’s foot and refused to let go. Green did what any other competitor would in that situation, but his previous history probably caused him to be suspended. The NBA handed down a one-game suspension to Green on yesterday.
“The suspension was based in part on Green’s history of unsportsmanlike acts,” the NBA said in a statement.
NBA fans enjoy the more offensive weapons the league has to offer but felt the game has gotten soft. Now, with a recent hockey incident, NBA fans have proof that the league is too soft.
Hockey Playoffs
Winnipeg Jets center Morgan Barron took a skate to the face in Tuesday night’s first-round playoff matchup against the Las Vegas Golden Knights. Barron had to receive 75 stitches above his right eye. He returned back to the bench wearing a protective face shield and ready to go if needed.
Baron was pushed from the back by Chandler Stephenson into Laurent Brossoit skate and that is how he was cut. The push was inadvertent, but it was apart of an intense playoff environment just like Green’s stomp.
Hockey players are allowed to fight and are also allowed much more physicality than basketball players. The NBA has become more of an entertainment league and has pivoted away from the days of 1980s-’90s basketball.
Green’s Incident
Every person watching Game 2 of the Warriors-Kings series knew what Green did was on purpose. We also know the history of Green with his feet, but suspending a key player for a game while his team is down 0-2 seems a bit excessive. Sabonis grabbed Green’s foot and received only a flagrant foul from the league for his role in the incident.
Sabonis said he was trying to protect himself, so is Green not allowed to protect himself?
Green will serve his second suspension in an important playoffs game. His first came in Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals after accumulating too many flagrant fouls that season. This suspension might be the end of the Warriors dynasty as we know it. Already down 0-2 and losing the heartbeat of their team is not a good combination. Only 7.2 percent of teams have won a series when down 0-2 and no team has won a series when down 0-3.
