Golden State Warriors star big man Draymond Green was ejected in the first quarter of a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves back on Nov. 14 after he put Rudy Gobert in a chokehold.
A HUGE SCUFFLE DURING THE WARRIORS-TIMBERWOLVES GAME 🍿 pic.twitter.com/01UcMOczs2
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) November 15, 2023
Draymond Green had Rudy Gobert in a CHOKEHOLD 😳 pic.twitter.com/eTN1KAcSx1
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) November 15, 2023
The NBA subsequently handed Green a five-game suspension for his scuffle with Gobert.
But Green recently spoke to the media and didn’t say that he regrets putting the 31-year-old in a chokehold nearly two weeks ago.
“What matters to me is how the people that I care about first and foremost, who are affected … what do they think.” https://t.co/ebQDvcndgB
— Kendra Andrews (@kendra__andrews) November 26, 2023
The Warriors haven’t been able to string together wins without Green, seeing as they own a 2-3 record since he’s been sidelined. During that span, Golden State has lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder twice and Phoenix Suns once.
One of the team’s two wins, meanwhile, came against a subpar opponent in the San Antonio Spurs. While the Spurs have a bright future thanks to the addition of Victor Wembanyama, they have been one of the worst teams in the NBA so far this season.
San Antonio owns a 3-13 record, which is the worst record in the Western Conference right now. Additionally, the team has lost a whopping 11 games in a row since starting out 3-2.
For perspective on just how poorly the Spurs have been playing of late, they’ve picked up one win since the start of November. Their most recent victory was against Kevin Durant and the Suns back on Nov. 2.
The Warriors weren’t quite able to hold down the fort without Green, and a difficult portion of their regular-season schedule is on the horizon. Golden State will play the Los Angeles Clippers twice and Sacramento Kings once next week.
It likely doesn’t come as a surprise to many that Green isn’t all that apologetic about putting Gobert in a chokehold earlier in the month. After all, he has a history of getting into physical altercations with opposing players.
Notably, he was suspended for Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals after getting tangled up with former Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James in Game 4 of that series.
Green will be able to return to the lineup for the Warriors when the team visits Sacramento to play an In-Season Tournament game against the Kings on Nov. 28.
