Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green has made a career by being the team’s enforcer. At times, he takes it a step further, which often results in an altercation or a heated moment. In the 2023-24 NBA season, many remember Green’s altercation with Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert and former Phoenix Suns big man Jusuf Nurkic. In both instances, he was suspended by the league.
The situation with Gobert earned him a five-game suspension. Things took a turn when the league handed down its punishment for striking Nurkic in the face. Green was suspended indefinitely and missed 16 games. It was tough for the Warriors not to have him on the floor, but it was needed for his punishment.
On Monday’s episode of “The Draymond Green Show,” the Warriors star expressed regret for being suspended. Despite the many altercations and heated moments he’s had throughout his career, he said that the moment with Nurkic was his lowest point.
“I haven’t really had many fights,” Green said. “We’ve had these moments. I think the one that I regret, I’m not one that lives with regrets, that’s not really how I roll. So I don’t know that’s the right word.
“But I think one moment that I really look back on is actually the moment where Jusuf Nurkić, because I actually think that moment cost me an opportunity to win a third gold medal. And so, I look back at that one and be like, ‘Man, that sucks.’ But like I said, I don’t live my life with any regrets at all. S**t happens. It is what it is.
“Things still turned out to be pretty fine for me. I can’t complain. But I would say looking back on that moment, which is what it is, it’d be that one.”
Draymond Green’s suspensions were the reason why he wasn’t part of Team USA’s Olympic roster
Draymond Green had the chance to be part of the iconic 2024 Team USA Olympic team. However, USA Basketball executive director Grant Hill explained that his on-court altercations and suspensions led to his exclusion from the player pool.
“His contributions have been significant, and he is a real part of the legacy of this organization for his excellence,” Hill said via ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. “But I think just in lieu of sort of what’s transpired this year, we made a decision to not have [Green] on this list with this particular point in time with the process.”
The 2024 national team went on to win the gold medal with Green’s longtime co-star Steph Curry.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
