Draymond Green has been ejected from 19 NBA games, the second most all time. The leader? Rasheed Wallace in a runaway with 29.
Wallace — in an appearance on the Gil Arena’s Show (with Gilbert Arenas) – said he and his 2004 Detroit Pistons teammates are to blame for Green’s behavior.
“That’s our fault… cause [Draymond] grew up in our locker room… that’s why he doing the bully sh*t he doing now.”
— Gilbert Arenas (@GilsArenaShow) December 5, 2023
Sheed on how the 2004 Pistons influenced Draymond Green pic.twitter.com/y9B5gksMGt
“That’s our fault... [Green] grew up in [the 2004 Pistons] locker room. One of his best friends was the son of the GM, so he was around us… Practice, in the locker room, after games, before games, he heard the different language, and we all know it’s a different language when the cameras are not there… That’s why he doing the bully s*** he doing now, in my opinion. He caught all that s*** in our locker room.”
Not to flip into parent mode, but only Green is responsible for Green’s behavior. It’s not about what he saw 19 years ago. Green is a future Hall of Famer in part because of the fire he plays with, fire that helped the Warriors win four rings but also has cost them — most famously his suspension for Game 5 of the 2016 NBA Finals (after kicking LeBron James in the “groin”) that helped turn that series in the Cavaliers’ favor. The concern of late is that he has lost a step as a player and his play no longer makes up for the ejections and suspensions — such as his recent five-game suspension for putting Rudy Gobert in a chokehold — it just hurts the team.
The Warriors, and frankly the league as a whole, could use more players with intensity and fire. The concern for the Warriors is that Green has lost track of where the line is; in the future, he could hurt more than he helps.
