Subscribe
Follow Us
The Golden State Warriors currently roster two of the top three players with the most technical fouls during the 2018-19 regular season, as Kevin Durant led the league with 17 techs and Draymond Green was right behind him with 16 penalties.
That trend has continued into the postseason, as both Durant and Green were assessed a pair of technical fouls in Golden State's first-round victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. Seven technical fouls (at any point in the playoffs) would lead to an automatic suspension, which is something that Warriors head coach Steve Kerr believes needs to change.
ESPN's Tim MacMahon detailed Kerr's stance on the playoff threshold and why it needs to be tweaked:
“I will never understand the rule that everybody falls under the exact same category, in terms of whether you lose in four games in the first round or you play 25 games and you go to the Finals, that it's the same technical fouls points that lead to a suspension. It seems strange.
“But I do know that Kevin and Draymond have a good feel for when they reach that number. They generally are able to shut that off, shut that emotion off and stay on the floor. That's going to be important.”
This rule played a vital role in the 2016 NBA Finals, when Green drew a suspension in Game 5 after accumulating too many flagrant foul points. The Warriors led the Cleveland Cavaliers 3-1 at the time, but infamously blew that lead, and they were destroyed in Game 5 without Green.
In other words, there is historical precedence for Kerr's frustration with the rule.
