Golden State was blown out by the Knicks on Thursday night, 119-104, but as the first half came to a close, they were down just five points.
That’s when Draymond Green was thrown out of the game.
He picked up his second technical foul, for cursing very loudly on the court. But it appeared that Green was yelling at his own teammate, James Wiseman, not the official. Referee John Butler told coach Steve Kerr at halftime that the call was a mistake, and he indeed got confused about the target of Green’s profanity.
Here’s video of the technical, courtesy of Warriors on NBCS.
You can hear the profanity, but you can’t see what Green was yelling about. That happened just before the footage here. He and Wiseman had a missed connection on a pass from Green to the rookie, and Green obviously wasn’t pleased. Although Wiseman said after the game that Green threw it too early.
He also said Green’s F-Bomb was no big deal, but he was confused about the call, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic.
“Or something like that,” is a funny way to describe what Green said. But it’s fantastic that Wiseman can shrug it off.
But that was a rough break for the Warriors. Of course, if Green hadn’t got the first technical, for barking about a rough whistle for teammate Stephen Curry, this mistake wouldn’t have resulted in an ejection. It’s a familiar story for Green, who missed a crucial game in the 2016 NBA Finals due to an accumulation of technicals.
It’s who Green is. And he has a reputation, which is part of the reason he got called for the mistaken foul. In fact, Green might have had this one coming, given how much he’s barked at the officials throughout is career. But still, the refs made a mistake and the Warriors paid the price. They’ll try to pick up the pieces on Saturday against the Jazz.
(Photo credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports)
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