The 2016 NBA Playoffs were pretty eventful for Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green. Of course, Green and the Warriors infamously blew a 3-1 lead against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals.
During that championship series, Green was issued a flagrant foul for his role in an altercation with James during Game 4. The Warriors forward was suspended for Game 5 of the series because of his accrual of flagrant points.
The Cavs won the fifth contest of the series and rattled off wins in Games 6 and 7 to claim their first title in franchise history.
Curiously enough, Green was involved in another incident during those same playoffs. He kicked then-Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams in the groin during Game 3 of the 2016 Western Conference Finals.
Green was fined $25,000 by the league for kicking Adams. Because of many of the incidents that have occurred throughout his career, the four-time All-Star has earned a reputation as a somewhat dirty player.
During a recent podcast appearance, the 32-year-old expressed his displeasure with the fact that other players in the league don’t seem to get the same treatment that he gets from referees. He mentioned a play involving Cavs youngster Evan Mobley in the process.
“There’s Draymond Green rules,” Green said. “There’s 100 percent Draymond Green rules. Evan Mobley did the same exact thing and kicked LeBron in the head, ain’t nobody talking about wanting to kick him out, ain’t nobody talking like it was [on] purpose.”
The play that Green alluded to happened last season in late March when the Cavaliers were hosting James and the Los Angeles Lakers. It looked like a somewhat hard hit from Mobley, but James seemingly didn’t suffer a serious injury.
It seems like there is some validity to Green’s statement. Not much was made of Mobley’s kick when it happened, and the young Cavs big man didn’t receive a suspension or fine for the incident. Surely, if Green were to kick James the same way, it would be a major story.
It’ll definitely be interesting to see how referees treat Green during the upcoming season as he and the Warriors look to defend their title.
