According to Draymond Green, he strolled the streets of Memphis, Tenn. after he was ejected in Game 1 of the Golden State Warriors’ second-round series versus the Memphis Grizzlies back in the 2022 NBA Playoffs.
“I ain’t had nothin’ else to do as in Memphis — ain’t nothin’ to do in Memphis,” Green said when reflecting on his decision to walk the city’s streets after getting ejected. “And I left — I was hot by the way, ’cause I ain’t feel like — I ain’t grab bruh like that. He went to the ground. Ain’t my fault he not strong enough. But, so I was hot — I got kicked out the game. I just walked back to the hotel. I don’t know why I was walkin’ down the streets of Memphis either, ’cause they hated me at that point.”
Green was ejected from the game after he committed a hard foul on Grizzlies big man Brandon Clarke with just over one minute remaining in the first half.
Draymond Green was assessed a Flagrant 2 foul and ejected for pulling Brandon Clarke down by his jersey.
Did the officials get the call right?
🎥 @TSN_Sportspic.twitter.com/QCnGSqmTGI
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) May 1, 2022
But even sans perhaps their best defensive player for the entirety of the second half, the Warriors still managed to beat the Grizzlies to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series thanks to a huge scoring night from Jordan Poole.
Poole dropped a team-high 31 points while shooting 12-of-20 from the field and 5-of-10 from 3-point range off the Golden State bench. But he also contributed in other ways outside of putting the ball in the hoop, considering he led the Warriors with nine assists and also grabbed eight rebounds in a game Golden State won by just a single point.
The Warriors went on to eliminate Ja Morant and the Grizzlies in six games. Memphis’ two wins in the series came in Games 2 and 5.
After sending the Grizzlies home, Golden State beat the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals and Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals to win the team its seventh title in franchise history. The championship also marked Green’s fourth since he was drafted out of Michigan State University with the No. 35 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.
But Green is fresh off a disappointing 2023-24 regular season with the Warriors. He appeared in only 55 of Golden State’s 82 contests and was handed a significant suspension after he hit Phoenix Suns big man Jusuf Nurkic in the face in December of last year.
“What's going on with him? I don't know. Personally, I feel like that brother needs help. I'm glad he didn't try to choke me. At the same time, it ain't nothing to do with basketball.”
– Jusuf Nurkic on Draymond Green hitting himpic.twitter.com/5lpMnAvVzf
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) December 13, 2023
Warriors fans are surely hoping that Green will be on his best behavior in the 2024-25 campaign and limit his incidents as much as possible. Golden State might need him to be on the floor more consistently if the team wants to qualify for the playoffs next year.
