Veteran forward Draymond Green will miss the Golden State Warriors’ next game after being suspended by the NBA for exceeding the league’s technical foul limit.
Green, 33, will miss Friday’s matchup against the Atlanta Hawks after receiving his 16th technical foul of the season during the second quarter of Wednesday’s 134-126 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Following a Clippers bucket with 40.8 seconds left in the second quarter, Green tossed a ball that appeared to strike Clippers point guard Russell Westbrook in the head. The ensuing technical foul was Green’s 16th of the season, resulting in an automatic one-game suspension without pay per NBA rules.
There had been speculation the suspension could have been rescinded after further review of the incident by NBA officials, with Green telling reporters after the game, “I think something will change. If that’s a tech, then every word you say on the court is a tech. We’ll see.”
In 11 years in the NBA, Green towed the line of the technical foul limit, twice reaching 15 technical fouls in a season but never crossing the line until now.
In addition to the suspension, any technical foul Green is called for in the Warriors’ final games this season will result in a $5,000 fine. Every two techs will result in another one-game suspension.
The Warriors (36-34) sit in the No. 6 spot in the West following the loss to the Clippers. They have four more games to go on their current five-game road trip, starting with Friday night’s matchup in Atlanta. Green is expected to return when the Warriors visit the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.
–Field Level Media