Golden State Warriors player Draymond Green had an altercation with Jordan Poole, and it was certainly worthy of a suspension.
Golden State Warriors player Draymond Green had an altercation with his teammate, Jordan Poole, that was aggressive and worthy of a suspension.
In a video originally released by TMZ, Green is shown walking up to Poole and getting into his face in an angry manner. Poole then shoved Green in what appeared to be self-defense before Green jumped onto him, knocking him down to the ground and pinning him against a wall. Teammates rushed to break the two up.
However, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic, Warriors general manager Bob Myers shared that he “doesn’t think” Green will be suspended for the altercation.
Myers also reported that the incident is being dealt with internally, to which Bobby Marks of ESPN responded, “Every team has a team handbook that list rules and fines for the season. The Green punishment would likely fall under ‘conduct detrimental to the team.’ The max is $50K. The big disappointment from a front office perspective is that a practice altercation became public.”
It’s unclear what exactly was said between the two, but Green reportedly apologized for the altercation. He has a history of acting on his emotions in unfavorable ways and has faced suspension before for issues internal to the team.
Warriors leader Draymond Green normally has emotional reactions
Dating back to 2018, Green got in a verbal altercation with NBA legend Kevin Durant that resulted in a one-game suspension. Green was upset over a loss to the LA Clippers in which Green failed to pass the ball to Durant during the last seconds of the game. Green then began to tell Durant to leave the team during free agency.
According to Kendra Andrews of ESPN, “On media day, Klay Thompson said being yelled at by Green at one point or another is a ‘bylaw now.’ And usually the Warriors welcome his fire.”
As proven, this isn’t the first time Green has acted in unfavorable ways and it probably won’t be the last. Myers seems set on not suspending him, telling ESPN, “These things happen. Nobody likes it, we don’t condone it, but it happens. Draymond apologized to the team. Jordan was there in the room. … As far as any suspension, punishment, fine, we will handle that internally.”
However, the reaction was completely out of line and he should be punished for it. A suspension is certainly possible, but Myers isn’t making it sound probable.