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Draymond Green says he expected his ejection for a questionable foul because of his 'reputation'

Scott Davis   

Draymond Green says he expected his ejection for a questionable foul because of his 'reputation'
  • Draymond Green was ejected from a playoff game for a flagrant foul.
  • Many fans and analysts disagreed with the ejection, believing Green didn't mean to intentionally give a hard foul.

Draymond Green said his ejection from Game 1 of the Golden State Warriors' second-round series vs. the Memphis Grizzlies happened because of his "reputation."

In the second quarter, Green attempted to stop Grizzlies big man Brandon Clarke at the rim. After first missing a block attempt and hitting Clarke across the head, Green grabbed Clarke's jersey as Clarke went up, sending Clarke to the floor.

Referees announced they'd review the foul to see if it was flagrant. After a lengthy review, they announced Green had been given a flagrant 2, ejecting him from the game after just 17 minutes.

Green, mocked the call, running around the court, pumping up the crowd and his teammates before leaving the court. Stephen Curry was seen shaking his head and laughing in disagreement.

After the game, a nail-biter which the Warriors won, 117-116, Green said on his podcast that the ejection was based on his reputation rather than the actual foul itself.

"You know, one thing about that foul is, I actually tried to hold him up," Green said. "I wasn't told anything because I left the court — guys were told I was ejected for throwing him down, which was very interesting because even when he hit the ground, I still was holding his jersey up.

"But at this point, I kind of expect things like that. I've been suspended from Game 5 of the NBA Finals. You think I, for one second, don't believe I'd get kicked out of Game 1 of the second round? Not surprising to me at all. Not one bit."

Green added: "I think tonight was probably a reputation thing more so than a hard foul."

Green's ejection drew the ire of fans and analysts alike, who thought the foul didn't warrant an ejection.

The Warriors were also not shy about criticizing the call, with Stephen Curry saying it's "not good for the game."

"Nobody wants to see that," Curry said.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said the team was "shocked" by the call.

However, Clarke essentially agreed with Green's comments — albeit saying the hard foul was something Green has been prone to committing.

"He's been known for flagrant fouls in his career," Clarke said. "I've watched him on TV my whole life, it feels like. I wasn't really shocked. I don't really like to flop or nothing, but he did hit me pretty hard twice when I saw it again. ... It is not shocking that he did that. Something he has done in the past."

On his podcast, Green quibbled with the use of the terms "unnecessary" and "excessive" contact in the flagrant definition. Green said the contact wasn't unnecessary because he was trying to stop Clarke from scoring. And he said it wasn't "excessive" because Clarke was jumping straight up and down, off of two feet, which Green said didn't put Clarke in a dangerous landing position once Green made contact with him.

"I didn't even really make contact with the guy's body, so 'excessive' would be a bit extreme," Green said.

Nonetheless, Green accumulated two flagrant foul points for the postseason. If he reaches four, he'll be suspended for a game — as he was for Game 5 of the 2016 Finals.

"If we go through the definition of a flagrant 2 foul, I'm not sure that that play would quite be the definition of a flagrant foul. I'm not sure it would meet that criteria," Green said, adding: "You're confused. I'm confused."

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