Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green was slapped with his first ejection of the season after a heated moment with Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell.
Midway through the third quarter, Mitchell charged at Green and shoved him, which the Warriors forward didn't like. Dray then confronted the Cavs superstar as both players jawed at each other in a heated moment.
For those who missed it, however, it all started in the previous play when Green appeared to push Mitchell, which sent him tumbling outside the court.
The referees proceeded to review the sequence of plays that led to the heated moment. As the two continued their war of words while security were between them, the officials eventually ruled that Mitchell's foul was a common foul. For Green's case, however, he was assessed with a technical foul for his previous shove on the Cavs scorer.
It was Green's second tech of the night after he received his first one after arguing with a referee in the first quarter.
Obviously, Green wasn't happy with the ruling. Instead of arguing further, though, he was caught on camera shouting and hyping up the crowd.
Draymond Green finished the night with eight points, five rebounds and four assists.
Warriors fans outraged over Draymond Green ejection
Sure enough, Dubs fans were not happy with the decision. With the Warriors trying to stage a comeback at that point with the Cavs leading by 10, the last thing they need was for their defensive anchor to be taken out of the contest.
Many also took issue with the fact that there was a delay in the technical foul issued to Green after the referees didn't see it the first time. Fans complained that it was clear the decision was rigged to help the Cavs win.
“Rigging at its damn finest,” one fan commented on the video posted by X account Dr. Guru.
“So you can go back and review a foul but they can't go back and review a clear goaltending last game ??? League doesn’t even hide their anti warriors agenda at this point,” another Warriors faithful shared, referencing the controversial no-call on Aaron Gordon's goaltending on Stephen Curry when Golden State played the Denver Nuggets.
Another one said, “The fact that Donovan didn’t get a tech is absolutely disgusting – apparently any time someone cheap shots you, you can go deck them with no consequences.”
A critic also asked, “Now let’s reverse the roles here, would Mitchell get a tech for this?”
“Dray gets chased down and shoved but gets ejected and other bum gets a common foul. GARBAGE officiating,” a fifth commenter added.
It remains to be seen how the NBA will explain the whole incident, but sure enough, the nature of the whole call subjects the officiating to scrutiny. Hopefully, though, Adam Silver and the NBA provide more clarity on the turn of events.
Of course it's not like Green and the Warriors can change anything when it comes to what has already been decided. Nonetheless, it might provide them more insight as they make their case that Green is being officiated differently compared to other players in the NBA.
For now, fans can only wait and see if the Warriors will appeal Green's technical foul and ejection against the Cavs and how the NBA will respond to it.
Follow Us
Subscribe