Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Draymond Green strikes again

Hide the women and children: Draymond Green assaulted someone again on national TV. This time, the victim was Bosnian center Jusuf Nurkić of the Suns.

Disciplinarian Joe Dumars must’ve had a conniption, witnessing the infamous league bully roundhouse another man six games after his return from, you guessed it, strangling a peacemaker.

What does coach Steve Kerr think?

“We need [Green]. He knows that, and we’ve talked to him, and he’s got to find a way to keep his poise and be out there for his teammates,” Kerr said somberly.

When asked about his absence, it was the usual blah, blah about Green’s impact spreading the floor and blah.

At Green’s turn for the presser, he said it wasn’t his intention to pound Nurkić and that he isn’t an accurate enough puncher for that to be the case. Yet he was precise enough to connect with Jordan Poole’s face, leaving him unconscious before last season. And he was accurate in slapping a fan at an East Lansing restaurant, getting himself roped in the process in 2015.

Allegedly, his intention THIS TIME was to flop, which is also a league violation and a $2,000 fine for the first five infractions.

“I spun away, and unfortunately, I hit him,” Green said, probably convinced he was speaking to a room full of mental midgets.

On Tuesday, the first thing he did as Nurkić laid face down into the hardwood was complain to referee Jacyn Goble that he was unfairly grabbed by the waist. It should have been a foul, but the Warriors’ perpetual problem had to make him pay for it.

Nurkić was diplomatic after the game. He said, “What’s going on with him, I don’t know. Personally, I feel like that brother needs help. I’m glad he didn’t try to choke me.”

Who could have seen this coming? Inconceivably, not Dumars. Barring some unforeseen epiphany, he’ll likely go lite on Green once more, when the punishment should start at 25 games. Next time reporters pull up on Ol’ Joe, they should ask him, “What will the penalty be next time?” or “Does he have to nearly kill someone like Kermit Washington did to Rudy Tomjanovich in front of thousands for him to finally get a hefty sentence?”

At this rate, It isn’t long before he tries this on one of his TNT buddies for schooling him in a public debate. I can see it now transpiring like this:

Anyone: Dray, you’re wro-” *POW* And then cut to commercial.

This season, Green’s contributions are tied for most flagrant foul points and third in technicals drawn. Rest assured, he would be in the lead for each, if not for serving a five-game suspension.

If Green wanted to come out of the game, he should’ve just asked because he hadn’t done anything in his 17 minutes but score two points on three shots with three turnovers and three fouls. Golden State lost without him by three. Yet many are conditioned to believe he is an integral part of a championship team when he’s a hypocritical, arrogant, malicious, declining and dirty player.

Sad to say, Green will be back to his old ways at some point when he returns. His work of ending the Warriors’ dynasty years early will likely be studied for years to come.

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