It's been a busy few weeks for Warriors forward Draymond Green. As the NBA regular season wound down, he reignited his beef with Rudy Gobert. Then he put the league on notice by calling his shot on a Warriors title run. And if that wasn't enough, he went and stomped on Domantas Sabonis during Game 2 of the Warriors-Kings series.
It was the stomp heard around the league. With 7:06 left in the fourth quarter and the Kings up four, Steph Curry grabbed a defensive rebound off a missed Malik Monk jumper. Green and Sabonis collided while contesting the rebound and Sabonis went to the ground. As the Warriors transitioned up the court, Green was explicitly seen deliberately stomping on Sabonis' abdomen. Sabonis had reportedly grabbed Green's ankle while on the ground. This led to Green being called for a flagrant foul and subsequently ejected. The Kings would hold onto their lead and eventually win 114-108.
Green Suspended For One Game
Despite initial speculation that Green wouldn't receive additional punishment for the stomp, the NBA handed down a one-game suspension. It's the second suspension Green has received this season. In March, he earned an automatic one-game suspension after accruing 16 technical fouls on the season. However, aside from his long-standing history of being a "dirty player", it's not the first time he's been handed a playoff suspension. In 2016, Green missed Game 5 of the NBA Finals after hitting LeBron in the groin. Famously, the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead in that series to mark a Cavs championship.
Furthermore, Green's suspension couldn't have come at a worse time for the Warriors. They are 0-2 in the playoffs for the first time under Steve Kerr. Additionally, playing against a white-hot Kings team, they will need to find a replacement for Green's assists and rebounds. This is not an easy task, especially given a lack of options at his position on the roster. While the Warriors still have the scoring powerhouse of the Splash Brothers, Jonathan Kuminga and Jamychal Green are not exactly Draymond 2.0. Could Green's suspension have cost the Warriors yet another playoff run? The Kings look to go up 3-0 in Green's absence on Thursday.
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