Stomping on rivals and punching teammates, Draymond Green is no stranger to altercations in his 13-year career. Be it flagrant fouls, fines, suspensions, the former DPOY even sits at the top of the ejection list. So he was surprised when the NBA announced no further punishment for Victor Wembanyama for his vicious elbow in Game 4. The Warriors veteran raised a poignant question and even had a clear message for the entire Minnesota Timberwolves roster.
Green previously tweeted about the blatant hypocrisy. He wrote, “Y’all have called for my career for less.” Then, on his podcast, he added, “What if it were Naz Reid elbowing Wemby like that? What would have happened? So, as I posed the question, what if it was the shoe was on the other foot and it was Naz Reid taking out Wemby? I think this situation would look totally different.” Here is what Draymond Green wants the Wolves to do. “Hey guys, this is fair game. There’s no suspension. There are no fines. This is a fair game. Who’s coming out there tomorrow night and doing it to Wemby?
“Who’s gonna elbow him in the face? That’s what I would be saying like, who’s getting him? Because clearly there are no fines for this act. There are no suspensions. You may get ejected fine, but you may take Wemby out of the game, so who’s doing this to Wemby? You got to get your get back. If nobody’s coming back at those guys going back at Wemby, you lose the war. Because what he just did was set a tone, and you either go full force at it or you get rolled over. So we’re gonna see what the Minnesota Timberwolves do.”
Draymond Green even stated that it was “crazy” that the San Antonio Spurs star got away with no fines. He then recalled the incident between Julius Randle and Nikola Jokic, in which the two stars had to face a larger fine despite not hitting anyone. In Game 4 of the Round 1 series, the Joker took exception to Jaden McDaniels basket when the game was sealed with 1.3 seconds to go. The Nuggets star charged and grabbed his rival, while Randle swooped in to save his teammate. It was physical and had a lot of shoving, so Jokic was fined $50,000 and Randle $35,000. In comparison, Victor Wembanyama’s hit job on Reid, which made contact on the throat, was more violent.
The game’s officials reviewed it and determined that the contact was an unnecessary, non-basketball play with a wind-up. Thus, Wemby was ejected for the first time in his career with a Flagrant 2 to his name. Even his head coach backed him despite his exit from the game. “At some point, he’s going to have to protect himself,” Mitch Johnson told reporters after the game. “I’m glad he took matters into his own hands — not at all in terms of hitting Naz Reid.” The Spurs coach made it clear that they wanted the French phenom to be extra physical.
That’s why Green urged the Wolves to get back. If Johnson can support his players, then Chris Finch could do the same after one of his star players intentionally hits Wemby. Since the league has already set the precedent with no punishment, the Wolves can use that to their advantage.
Why was Victor Wembanyama Not Suspended Despite Elbowing Naz Reid’s Face? 2 Key Factors Considered
Postseason suspensions are based on a points system counting flagrant fouls, and Wemby steered clear of that mark. The Flagrant 2 in Game 4 meant that Victor Wembanyama has two points, but it takes four (another Flagrant 2 or two Flagrant 1 fouls) for him to get a suspension. Also, Wemby does not have the lengthy history of incidents like this compared to someone such as Draymond Green. That’s why ESPN’s Shams Charania explained.
Subsequently, the senior insider appeared on SportsCenter for a detailed report on the incident and the aftermath.“The two major things to take into account here, one is that he was ejected from this game for a flagrant 2, for an elbow to Naz Reid’s face. He missed a majority of Game 4 due to that ejection. And most importantly, there’s no prior history, so the NBA took that into account in this decision. No further discipline for Victor Wembanyama,” he added.
This decision did not sit right with many analysts around the league, like Kendrick Perkins, Stephen A. Smith, and even Nick Wright. At first, even Draymond Green thought a suspension wouldn’t surprise him. But no punishment certainly surprised him. So, Victor Wembanyama will be present for Game 5 in San Antonio.
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The post “Who’s Gonna Elbow Him?”: Draymond Green Urges Timberwolves to Get Back at Victor Wembanyama After NBA Takes No Action appeared first on EssentiallySports. Add EssentiallySports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
