Draymond Green has found his name in the headlines for all the wrong reasons while on the basketball court this season.
His first incident with Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert cost him five games when he placed him in a chokehold. In his latest incident, which marked his 20th ejection in his NBA career, Green has been suspended indefinitely. This time, he struck Jusuf Nurkic of the Phoenix Suns in the face while on the offensive side of the ball last Wednesday. Some find it hard to believe that it wasn’t intentional, a sentiment shared by NBA front offices, leading to the agreed-upon suspension.
Green has certain requirements he has to complete before he can compete for the Warriors again this season, one of them being counseling sessions. Shams Charania of The Athletic is reporting that Green has started counseling and will remain sidelined for the next three weeks, which is another 12 games at the least that he will not be available for.
Having faced five suspensions in the last two NBA seasons, Draymond Green is now at a crucial juncture, needing to strike a balance in his competitive nature by discerning what is acceptable and what crosses the line. Given his extensive NBA career, there’s a divide in opinions—some argue that change is unlikely at this stage, while others believe that the recent indefinite suspension serves as a necessary wake-up call for Green to grasp the costly implications of his actions on the team. Head coach Steve Kerr echoed similar sentiments on Thursday.
“To me, this is about more than basketball. It’s about helping Draymond,” Kerr told the media. “I think it’s an opportunity for Draymond to step away and to make a change in his approach and his life and that’s not an easy thing to do. That’s not something you say ‘OK, five games and then he’s going to be fine.” Green is a smart person and he knows how he can and cannot react.
Hopefully, counseling and a fresh start after New Year will allow him to put all this noise behind him so he can go out and just hoop.
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