Did NBA Set a Bad Precedent By Suspending Draymond Green Indefinitely? Here’s Why They May Have

The NBA has made a controversial decision to suspend Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green indefinitely for hitting Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face with a 360 spin move during a game on Tuesday night. Green was ejected from the game after the incident, which he claimed was an accident and apologized to Nurkic for. However, the league deemed his action as unnecessary and excessive, and cited his repeated history of flagrant fouls as a factor in his punishment.

Why the NBA Suspending Draymond Green Indefinitely May Have Set a Bad Precedent

This suspension raises several questions and concerns about the fairness and consistency of the NBA’s disciplinary system. What does indefinitely mean, and how long will Green be out of action? What criteria did the league use to determine the severity of his offense? Was it based on past incidents, or solely factoring the act itself?

According to most recent reports, the NBA once again looked at his past incidents when making this decision. The strange thing about that is we have all seen many incidents in other NBA games where a player accidentally hits another while flopping, or trying to sell a call.

If they are suspending Draymond Green indefinitely based on past offenses, does that mean he is never allowed to get a flagrant foul again? Does that mean he has to play elite defense while being in fear of accidentally hitting someone, because of past offenses?

Remember, Draymond Green claims he accidentally hit Jusuf Nurkic, and Stan Van Gundy who was calling the game also said that it looked unintentional. Green’s hand wasn’t even closed when he made contact with Jusuf Nurkic’s face, which could be proof it was accidental. Draymond Green also said he agreed with the ejection, based on how it is defined by the NBA. It seems evident there was no malice behind this incident, but others are not seeing it that way.

This was the one time where the league should have show Draymond Green more understanding, because it arguably did look accidental, and he allegedly apologized to Nurkic. We have never seen Green publicly apologize after an incident like this, so it likely was accidental.

If anything it was terrible flop, which resulted in a hit to the face, something that happens all the time in the NBA. Joel Embiid accidentally tore Danny Green’s ACL and MCL while flopping to the ground just a few seasons ago.

The NBA defines a flagrant foul as any contact against an opponent that is deemed unnecessary or excessive by a referee. Depending on the ruling, the referee can call a Flagrant Foul 1, Flagrant Foul 2, or downgrade the foul to a common or technical foul. The opponent is rewarded two free throws and possession.

A Flagrant Foul 2 also results in the ejection of the player committing the foul, and a player who commits two Flagrant Foul 1s in the same game is also ejected. The NBA also uses a point system to track these fouls, with one point awarded for a Flagrant Foul 1 and two points awarded for a Flagrant Foul 2. A player who accumulates six or more points in a season is automatically suspended for one game, and each additional point results in another game suspension.

Those are the only rules that needed to be applied to this situation, and maybe a fine for flopping. Suspending a player indefinitely based on his past offenses, because of a flagrant foul that was arguably accidental sets a entirely different precedent for this situation. One that arguably goes beyond basketball, and may be driven by media pressure more so than fair treatment.

It’s like the NBA is telling Draymond Green, he can never be the intense defensive player he once was ever again, because of past incidents he was already punished for. This wouldn’t have happened during the Jordan era.

This is almost like the NFL making rules regarding how players can’t and can’t tackle, then fining the players that accidentally break the rule at game speed when it’s impossible to avoid if they want to effectively play defense.

How can Draymond Green ever play basketball normally again, knowing if he gets a flagrant 2 he might be suspended indefinitely, because of past incidents he was already punished for?

The argument is definitely compelling that this warranted a 3 game suspension, and a fine for flopping at most if they wanted to be harsh. Indefinite is something beyond harsh. The NBA just basically neutered Draymond Green’s potential as a defensive player over what may have truly been an accidental hit, which in turn may have just destroyed the Warriors future unless they trade him.