Draymond Green, say he’ll get help during his indefinite suspension
NBA

Draymond Green, say he’ll get help during his indefinite suspension

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The Golden State Warriors believe Draymond Green needs help to curb his long history of rough play, and general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. is hopeful an indefinite suspension provides enough time for their star forward to make real progress.

Dunleavy said Thursday that the team is satisfied with the NBA’s latest punishment for Green, the four-time NBA champion who was indefinitely banned Wednesday after hitting Phoenix center Jusuf Nurkic in the face. The suspension was the sixth of Green’s career and his fourth in 2023.

“I think this is something that a lot of people may see as a problem, but we’re looking to turn it into a positive,” Dunleavy said on the UCLA campus during the Warriors’ morning shootaround before their game against the Clippers.

“(Green is at) a point in his career and his life where we want to get some things straightened out, and maybe sometimes you need a jolt like that. But I think it’s been very positive, very open, and (we’re) extremely optimistic that we can get to where we need to go.”

“The thought process is there’s a lot of ways you can go about this, but for now, we think the healthiest thing is for him to be around,” Dunleavy said. “It may not be every single day, but we’re not jettisoning the guy off somewhere.”

Dunleavy also unambiguously confirmed the Warriors are committed to the 33-year-old Green, who is in the first season of a four-year, $100 million contract extension. Although Dunleavy pointedly said Golden State’s starting lineup hasn’t played well enough during the team’s 10-13 start, he praised the play of Stephen Curry and Green.

“He’s been here for a long time,” Dunleavy said of Green. “He’s hung a ton of banners and means so much to this organization. I think this is about turning this thing into a positive and getting better. I think that happens, and we feel really good. Like I said, his play has been terrific. It’s just his lack of availability that’s not been great, and we want to make that better.”