Stephen A. Smith has weighed in on Draymond Green's latest suspension. "I think the appropriate question is - is this the end of Draymond Green in Golden State? Because if I'm the Golden State Warriors, if they are looking to trade him and move on from him, who could blame them at this particular moment in time? Because I don't know what future Draymond Green has with this team," Smith said on Get Up! this morning.
Draymond Green was "suspended indefinitely" by the NBA after being ejected against the Suns earlier this week. Per the NBA's statement on the decision, the suspension "takes into account Green's repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts." Furthermore, "He will be required to meet certain league and team conditions before he returns to play," the league added. Green received his 18th career ejection, and third of the season, for striking the Suns' Jusuf Nurkić in the face with a spinning backhand early in the third quarter of Tuesday's game. Prior to the season, Green's disruptive tendencies were seen as a reason that the Warriors were somewhat hesitant to re-sign him.
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50 Cent Defends Draymond Green
Meanwhile, 50 Cent has come out in defense of Green. "😆This fool is my favorite basketball 🏀 player, WTF Is wrong wit him. 🤷🏽♂️that was a mistake, I will apologize for him. 🤨come on it’s a physical game," Fif wrote on Instagram. However, while Green did apologize for the incident, the NBA has chosen to come down hard on the veteran. The Warriors will meet with Green and his agent, Rich Paul, to devise a rehabilitative program to help Green return to the court. Additionally, Green's salary will be docked $153,941 per game that he misses. However, this increases to $202,922 per game after his 20th missed game.
Neither Green nor the Warriors have released a statement about the suspension. However, head coach Steve Kerr did criticize Green for his actions following the ejection. "We need him. We need Draymond. He knows that. We've talked to him. He's got to find a way to keep his poise and be out there for his teammates," Kerr said. The Warriors have said they will address the suspension at a shootaround ahead of their game against the Clippers tonight.
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