Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green was ejected from Monday night's game against the Phoenix Suns after a confrontation that saw him throw Suns center Bol Bol to the floor and grab the jersey of Dillon Brooks.
Green was running back on defense in the third quarter when Bol Bol received the ball in the paint. As Bol Bol attempted a layup, Green fell to the ground. Green then grabbed Bol Bol around the waist and threw him down. Brooks then intervened, and Green responded by grabbing Brooks' jersey. Green was assessed two technical fouls and ejected from the game.
Despite the incident, the Warriors, who were trailing 67-57 at the time, rallied to win the game 116-113.
Brooks stated he was attempting to deescalate the situation. "I was just trying to deescalate the whole thing," Brooks said. "He did a lot there, fell down, and pushed him at the end of it. I was just trying to deescalate it. He was just tweaking all game. So let it be."
Warriors guard Brandon Podziemski suggested the altercation "fueled" his team. "We didn't have that edge to us to start the game," he said. "Found it a little bit in the second quarter and then they came out in the third quarter pretty well and then that kind of changed the game for us. Everybody locked in a little bit more and came together for Dray. I think it was needed."
Bol Bol downplayed the incident, saying, "I think it's just a basketball play, he's just out there playing basketball. Nothing against Draymond, he's just playing basketball out there."
This was Green's first ejection of the season. He has accumulated 179 technical fouls and 23 ejections in his career. He has three technical fouls in the Warriors' first eight games.