Draymond Green was tossed from Monday's Warriors-Suns game in San Francisco after shoving big man Khaman Maluach to the floor and then getting into it with Phoenix forward Dillon Brooks, triggering a pair of technical fouls that forced him out of the contest for good.
The sequence began with 10 minutes left in the third quarter, when Green was defending Maluach beneath the hoop. After the whistle, Green tossed Maluach to the floor, and officials immediately hit him with a technical foul, according to The Athletic. ABC7 described the play as a “throwdown.” The Athletic reported, “Green got up and pushed Maluach to the floor and was immediately called for a technical.”
Brooks then confronted Green over the hard foul, and the two grabbed each other's jerseys before being separated following a brief staredown, per the original ABC7 News report on the incident. Officials went to video review and called a double technical on both players, with the second technical on Green triggering an automatic ejection.
A Short Night on the Floor
Green's night ended early. The 36-year-old finished with four points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal in just 17 minutes before his exit, according to theScore. He had entered the game averaging three points, 5.2 rebounds and 7.2 assists through his first five appearances of the season, the same outlet noted.
With Green out of the lineup, backup big man Charles Bassey stepped up, racking up 13 points and four rebounds in 12 minutes of action, the article notes. Green's ejection was his first of the season but the 23rd of his career, and he had two ejections last season, per the same account.
Technical Trouble Piles Up for Both Players
Monday's two technicals gave Green three for the season and 182 for his career, according to Elias Sports Bureau figures cited in the report. Brooks, meanwhile, has his own history with officials — he led the league in technical fouls last season with 17, according to The Arizona Republic.
Brooks has been at the center of physical flashpoints before this season. He received a flagrant 2 — an automatic ejection — in Phoenix's home loss to Denver the previous Friday, the Arizona Republic reported. Monday's double technical marked the second time in less than a week that Brooks was ejected or drew major discipline on the floor.
