NEW YORK – Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green’s indefinite National Basketball Association (NBA) suspension in the wake of violent on-court actions is over after 12 games, the league said on Jan 6.
It issued a statement saying the 33-year-old had been reinstated. He was suspended on Dec 14 after he was ejected for violently swinging an arm into the head of Phoenix Suns centre Jusuf Nurkic in a game two days earlier.
In the third quarter of the game, Nurkic had his hand on Green’s hip while defending him when the Warriors forward swung around wildly, hitting the Bosnian with his open hand.
Green received a flagrant-2 foul and was ejected for making “unnecessary and excessive contact to the face”, the referees determined after a video review.
That incident came weeks after he was given a five-game ban for grabbing the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert in a headlock and pulling him across the court.
The league said that during his suspension, Green “completed steps that demonstrated his commitment to conforming his conduct to standards expected of NBA players”.
It added: “He has engaged in meetings with a counsellor and has met jointly on multiple occasions with representatives of the NBA, the Warriors, and the National Basketball Players Association, both of which will continue throughout the season.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said at the time of Green’s suspension that he thought the sanction – virtually unheard of in the league – was appropriate.
“To me, this is about more than basketball,” he said. “It’s about helping Draymond.
“It’s an opportunity for Draymond to step away and to make a change in his approach, in his life. And that’s not an easy thing to do.”
ESPN reported on Jan 4 that Green was expected back at the Warriors’ training facility “in the coming days” to start preparing for a return to play.
ESPN, citing unnamed sources, said he was described as “open and engaged” in meetings with team, league and union officials.
Green, the 2017 Defensive Player of the Year, has a long history of questionable fouls and has received 18 ejections in his career. He sat out Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers for committing a flagrant foul on LeBron James in the previous game. The Cavs won three straight games to clinch the title.
In 2022, Green was disciplined by the Warriors after an altercation in which he punched former teammate Jordan Poole at a pre-season practice.
But he played a key role in four Warriors championship runs and could provide a strong defensive presence for a Golden State team who have struggled to hold on to leads in recent games.
The Warriors (17-18) host the Toronto Raptors (14-21) on Jan 7, having lost four of their last six games. AFP, REUTERS
