Draymond Green wasn’t suspended yesterday for maybe intentionally kicking Steven Adams square in the groin during Sunday night’s Western Conference Finals Game 3. He was instead fined, and allowed to suit up for tonight’s Game 4 showdown, taking place at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Game 3.
The entire episode, highlighted by yesterday’s media blitz, unfolded in quite the bizarre manner. During the course of a foul committed by Steven Adams during Sunday night’s game, Green flailed his limbs, catching Adams in the genitals. Afterwards, each player uttered cheeky comments to reporters, then greeted each other pleasantly in the bowels of the arena before departing.
Yesterday’s headlines were dominated by GroinGate mania, which was joined by Russell Westbrook, who unmistakably accused Green of purposely trying to hurt Adams. Green, never one to back down from a challenge, slyly counter-accused Westbrook of being part of the “superstar group” that made flopping a thing in the NBA. (For what it’s worth, it’s this writer’s personal opinion that began much earlier with guys like Chris Paul and LeBron James.)
However, the only opinion that matters in the end is the NBA’s, and it came down at a peculiarly late time yesterday. It was after 7 p.m. ET when the league finally announced that Green would be fined, not banned from playing in Game 4, for the Adams incident, which was labeled a flagrant 1 during the game.
Today, Adam Silver may have explained why the announcement of the decision came so late in the day. The NBA’s commissioner admitted, during an interview with ESPN, that not suspending Green for tonight’s game was a “close call.” He also went on to mention that there was “no precedent” for ESPN commentator Jeff Van Gundy‘s suggestion of a two-game suspension.
There’s no doubt that tension will be at a series-high tonight. Tip-off is at 9 p.m. ET.
