Back at it again, Draymond Green’s altercation causes the head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies to fall to the ground
How did we get back here, then? In the Warriors vs. Grizzlies game on Wednesday, March 20, Green challenged Grizzlies forward Santi Aldama as he made a layup. Green struck Aldama after he seemed unhappy with his contact, which prompted Green to strike back. After a brief exchange of pushing, the four-time NBA Champion grabbed Aldama’s jersey around his chest and ordered him, “Don’t do that,” before pushing him and sprinting back up. It seemed that he didn’t want the situation to get worse given his prior suspensions.
Following the altercation, Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins appeared to be urging the officials to penalize Green for his rough play. Desmond Bane, a star player for the Grizzlies, approached Draymond to attempt to get him to move aside as he listened in on the exchange. When Green pushed Bane’s hands away from him out of self-defense, the Warriors and Grizzlies both emptied their benches due to the increased violence. Green was shoved into Jenkins in the escalating brawl, sending him sprawling to the ground.
Following their altercation, Draymond Green and Desmond Bane were both given technical fouls. This heated exchange served as fire for the Golden State Warriors, who went on a 17-0 run to win the game 137-116.
There are two reasons why this circumstance is important. Firstly, it’s an instance of Green engaging in physical contact with rival players following his ban for strangling Rudy Gobert earlier in the season. Secondly, Green received a second suspension and was made to attend therapy after hitting Jusuf Nurkic in the face.
In addition, the Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies have been at odds for a few seasons now. In December 2022, Grizzlies standout guard Ja Morant said there was no competition for them in the Western Conference. In response to these remarks, Draymond stated on his own podcast in January 2023 that, despite Ja’s extraordinary potential, the Grizzlies team was not everything that it seemed.
Since the Golden State Warriors defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2022 playoffs and advanced to the NBA Finals for the fourth time in seven years, Draymond Green would be the one with the most knowledge about that. The Grizzlies won the second seed in the Western Conference following Ja Morant’s self-assured remark, but they were defeated by the 7th-seeded Los Angeles Lakers in the opening round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
Although their season got out to a poor start because of Ja Morant’s 25-game ban, his season-ending injury, and the injuries to other players, they were already eliminated from postseason contention in 2024.
While Green may not have been wholly at fault in the circumstances on Wednesday, his public humiliation between the teams and his history of physical altercations give him a poor reputation as he works to mend it.