PORTLAND, Ore. -- Following his team's 110-99 Game 3 win over the Trail Blazers on Saturday night, Warriors forward Draymond Green criticized his interactions with referees earlier this season.
A little less than 12 hours later, in a Portland hotel ballroom, Green revealed his verbal onslaughts on the refs were having an impact on his son, Draymond Jr.
"I realized how impressionable the kids are at the ages they're at," Green said Sunday afternoon. "I just really want to be a good example to them and show them the right things."
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Green, who finished with an NBA-leading 16 technical fouls this season, said he'd come home and see his 2-year-old son mimicking a flopping move on his toy court, much to the forward's chagrin.
“My son was shooting and flopping," Green said. "I said, 'You gotta stop watching the NBA.'
"He would play on his little hoop and then stomp around the house," Green continued. "Like, I like the intensity, but slow down, little fella."
At points this season, Green -- who consistently ranks among the league leaders in technical fouls -- said he'd see himself arguing with officials during film sessions and be disappointed in himself. In one instance, he recalled an interaction with official Zach Zarba in which he called "embarrassing."
Golden State Warriors
"There were just times where I've looked back at the game and I would see my body language and pouting to a referee ... It was disgusting to me," Green said. "It was something that I wanted to be mindful of, and especially coming into these playoffs."
Green knows how his interactions with referees can affect a series. Nearly three years ago, he was suspended for Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals after he received his seventh technical of the postseason for hitting then-Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James in the groin at the end of Game 4.
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While Green has a playoff-leading four technicals this year, he hasn't been called for one in the Western Conference finals. With seven technicals garnering an automatic suspension during the postseason, Green's current mindset toward the officials will be vital.