Warriors’ Draymond Green Suspended for Game 3 vs. Kings

The Warriors were hopeful that forward Draymond Green would only be fined. Instead, he has been suspended, the NBA announced in a press release.

More specifically, Green will have to sit out Thursday’s Game 3 vs. the Kings after stepping on forward/center Domantas Sabonis in the fourth quarter of Game 2. Sabonis grabbed Green’s ankle on the play, with Green breaking free and stomping on the chest of Sabonis.

The league cited Green’s “history of unsportsmanlike acts” in suspending Green. The suspension is for one game.

It could be worse timing for the defending champions, who trail their series by a 2-0 count. It’s the first time in the Stephen Curry era that the Warriors have faced such a deficit.

The following was released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/KEnWx2qTvs

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 19, 2023

Green reportedly requested to have an X-ray on his ankle after the game, as a result of Sabonis pulling on it, as we relayed here.

“My leg got grabbed. Second time in two nights,” Green told reporters after Game 2. “Referees just watch it. I gotta lay on my foot somewhere and I’m not the most flexible person, so it’s not stretching that far. … I can only step so far with someone pulling my leg away.”

As for trailing the series by a 2-0 count, Green indicated he remained confident.

“It’s exciting, right?” he said. “It’s a new challenge. After the game, I was thinking that: This is something we haven’t seen yet. And we’ve conquered all the rest of them, so why not go conquer this one? It will be a lot of fun.”