Draymond Green

Draymond ejected vs. Suns after striking Nurkic in head

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For the third time this season, Draymond Green was ejected from a Warriors game.

The veteran forward was tossed during the third quarter of Tuesday night's contest in Phoenix after officials assessed him with a Flagrant 2 foul for swinging at Suns center Jusuf Nurkić and striking him across the face.

Nurkić immediately fell to the floor while holding the side of his face after Green hit him.

Green has played in 15 games this season, been ejected from three, been suspended for five, and missed two because of injury and one for personal reasons.

Green was thrown out of the Warriors' Nov. 11 game against the Cleveland Cavaliers after a strange altercation with star guard Donovan Mitchell.

Less than one week later, Green was ejected early in the Warriors' meeting with the Minnesota Timberwolves for grabbing Rudy Gobert by the neck and then dragging him across the court. The NBA later handed Green a five-game suspension for that incident.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr understood that Green was just trying to defend his teammate, Klay Thompson, but the coach admitted his star "took it too far."

“The line is when you’re not going to be there the next five games for your teammates at a time when they need you," Kerr said last month. "Understanding the repercussions of the actions, understanding the impact on the team, understanding the visual. … I know Draymond and he’s a wonderful human being. He’s filled with passion and love and respect for his teammates.

"But that is a bad look. That’s a bad look. He knows that, and he’s embarrassed by that. So, that’s the line. That’s where the line is.”

Green, a four-time NBA champion, is averaging 10.2 points on 49.5 percent shooting from the field and a career-high 45 percent from 3-point range this season, along with 5.8 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 25.7 minutes.

It's unknown if Green will face further discipline from the NBA for this latest incident, but we'll likely know soon enough.

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