The NBA playoffs don't officially start until Draymond Green gets ejected from a game.
The Golden State Warriors were mounting a comeback in Game Two against the Sacramento Kings when on a rebound, Domantas Sabonis fell and grabbed Green's ankle. Green responded by stomping on Sabonis' chest.
Sabonis & Draymond pic.twitter.com/3SJRNGqxfv
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) April 18, 2023
Whistles blew, and while officials reviewed the replay, Sabonis lay on the court and Green strutted around the court, egging on the Golden1 Center crowd.
An animated Draymond Green riling up the Sacramento crowd while they review him stepping on Sabonis pic.twitter.com/cmc5yJ4b9Q
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) April 18, 2023
The verdict? Flagrant one foul on Sabonis for the leg grab. Flagrant two on Green for the stomp, and an automatic ejection.
Golden State tied the game after the ejection, and later got within a point on a Klay Thompson three-pointer that cut the lead to 102-101. Ultimately, losing their best interior defender - especially with Kevon Looney playing with five fouls - was too much for the Warriors to overcome.
After the game, an unapologetic Green complained that it was the second time his leg had been grabbed in two nights and downplayed his stomp, saying "I gotta land my foot somewhere, and I'm not the most flexible person."
Draymond Green: “My leg got grabbed. Second time in two nights.” Said he needed to put his foot somewhere but officials told him he “stomped too hard.”
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) April 18, 2023
Full soundbite pic.twitter.com/nmQj8tP0yC
It's rather unbelievable that Green considered Sabonis' chest merely a "landing spot" for his foot. It's only slightly less believable that Sabonis said he was "trying to protect himself" and refused to say whether he had grabbed Green's ankle.
Domantas Sabonis: “I fell and I was trying to protect myself and then obviously the incident happened. I feel like there’s no room for that in our game today.”
— Kendra Andrews (@kendra__andrews) April 18, 2023
When I asked him if he grabbed Green’s ankle like Draymond said he did, he repeated that sentiment.
Will Green get an additional suspension? He famously got suspended in the 2016 NBA Finals, which likely cost his team a title. The suspension definitely cost the Warriors this game, and they've now gone down 2-0 in a series for the first time in the Steph Curry era.
The Kings medical staff is certainly laying the foundation for the suspension, sending Sabonis in for X-rays, which were negative. Of course, doctors may have been able to guess that from watching Sabonis' emphatic dunk to close the game.
X-rays returned negative on Sabonis’ sternum and it appears he’s avoided injury, source tells ESPN. He will undergo additional testing on Tuesday as a precaution. https://t.co/7gmm172EG8
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 18, 2023
Without or without Green, the Warriors are in big trouble against a relentless Kings team. If they don't figure some things out soon, they're going to get stomped out of the playoffs.
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