‘Draymond rules?’ Warriors star thinks it’s good that NBA treats him
differently
Draymond Green believes 76ers coach Doc Rivers said it best when it came
to the Warriors star's surprising suspension.
>Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) yells towards the stands
before being ejected for a flagrant foul against Sacramento Kings’
Domantas Sabonis (10) in the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the Western
Conference First Round playoffs, at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento,
Calif., on Monday, April 17, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
By MADELINE KENNEY | mkenney@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: April 22, 2023 at 4:20 p.m. | UPDATED: April 22, 2023 at 4:28
p.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2023/04/22/draymond-rules-warriors-star-thinks-its-good-that-nba-treats-him-differently/

SAN FRANCISCO — Don’t expect Draymond Green to change his ways in the
wake of his Game 3 suspension.

“They created Draymond rules before, them sh–s don’t work. Here I am,
still sitting here, still winning,” Green said proudly from the podium
after Saturday’s practice.

“They created those rules before, they didn’t work, they still don’t
work. Maybe they did. Draymond won’t be moved by no Draymond rules. I
will continue to play the game, I love playing the game. Operate how I
operate, be exactly who I am because that leads to winning. If I was
losing, they wouldn’t be creating Draymond rules. As long as they’re
creating Draymond rules, that means we’re winning, and that’s great.”

Green believes Doc Rivers said it best when the 76ers coach shared his
thoughts on Green’s punishment.

Speaking to reporters Friday, Rivers said he disagreed with the league’s
decision to suspend Green. He also suggested the NBA might’ve set a
“very dangerous precedent” by “punishing the retaliators and not the
instigators” of on-court clashes.

After Saturday’s practice, Green said he “strongly agreed” with Rivers.

Green was handed a one-game suspension this week for stomping on Kings
center Domantas Sabonis’ chest. The act got him tossed with seven
minutes to go in Game 2. The NBA said Green’s history of unsportsmanlike
acts” played a factor in its decision.

NBA executive vice president Joe Dumars said on NBA Today it’s possible
that if the player wasn’t Green they might not have been suspended. He
also told the Associated Press that Green’s play was “excessive,
over-the-top, dangerous, repeat offender.”

Green watched Game 3 from home but greeted his teammates in the locker
room after the win. He said this suspension was much different than 2016
when he was barred from Game 5 of the NBA Finals for hitting LeBron
James in the groin because the stakes were higher this time around.

“Being in a dog fight and not being able to participate, that’s tough,”
Green said. “There’s never a suspension that will bother me. There’s no
game that could compare to [Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals.]”

Green chose not to share his personal feelings about the suspension,
saying “it’s neither here nor there.”

“I’ll get suspended again at some point,” he said. “It is what it is.”

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Still, it pained him to not be available to go to war with his teammates
when they were facing a 2-0 deficit to the Kings.

“We come here every single day all year and prepare for battle with
these guys,” Green said. “And to know you’re in the battle with your
backs against the wall, and to not be there for them, that’s a letdown.
So for me, that was it. It’s just not being in the dogfight.”

The Warriors kept their championship hopes alive with their 114-97 win
over the Kings on Thursday. They have a chance to even the first-round
series before it heads back to Sacramento with Game 4 on Sunday.

Green credited his teammates to responding to the adversity of his absence.

“There’s a lot of front-runner stuff that goes on in this league and we
pride ourselves on not being that,” Green said. “When the going gets
tough, we get tougher and guys did that and that’s all it really matters
honestly.”

--
Madeline Kenney | Warriors reporter
Madeline Kenney is the Bay Area News Group's Golden State Warriors beat
reporter for The Mercury News and East Bay Times. A Nebraska native, she
is graduate of Loyola University of Chicago. She holds a Bachelor in
Communication degree, with a major in broadcast journalism and minors in
sports management and marketing, and is a friend of Sister Jean, the
103-year-old nun who became famous during the Ramblers’ 2018 run to the
Final Four, Madeline previously worked for the Chicago Sun-Times
covering everything from sports to crime and politics. When she’s not
working, she enjoys trying new restaurants and exploring the great outdoors.