Warriors' Draymond Green ejected from Game 1 for flagrant foul vs. Grizzlies
Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green was ejected Sunday late in the second quarter of Game 1 of a Western Conference semifinals series against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Green, 32, swiped at the ball and appeared to inadvertently hit Brandon Clarke in the face. He then pulled Clarke down to the floor by his jersey. After calling an ordinary foul on Green, officials upgraded it to a flagrant 2 foul after review, disqualifying him from the remainder of the game.
After the decision was made, Green played up to the jeering Memphis crowd while Warriors coach Steve Kerr and point guard Stephen Curry argued with officials.
The Warriors trailed 54-53 at the time of the foul and trailed 61-55 at halftime.
Green is a four-time NBA All-Star and earned NBA Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2017. He missed significant time during the 2021-22 regular season due to a back injury, but averaged 7.5 points, 7.0 assists and 7.3 rebounds in 46 games played. In the Warriors' five-game victory over the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs, he averaged 9.6 points, 7.4 assists, 5.4 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and 1.5 steals.
In 2016, Green was suspended for Game 5 of the NBA Finals after accumulating four flagrant fouls in the playoffs. Sunday was the first time he has ever been ejected from a playoff game, though.
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