Draymond Green admits he ‘deserved to be kicked out’ after what he told the refs vs. Magic

After Draymond Green got himself ejected for the fourth time this season on Wednesday against Orlando, he immediately expressed his regret the following day on his own podcast show. The player recognised that he deserved to be kicked out of the game, as he discussed with the officials after they called a foul on Andrew Wiggins early in the game. 

“It just can’t happen,” he said on yesterday’s episode. “I said what I said. I deserved to be kicked out at that point. If I’m all the way honest with y’all, kind of was trying to turn my body and angle it to go to the bench, but I said what I said a little too soon before angling my body. … But, yeah, it just can’t happen.”

This punishment also means his 19th career regular-season ejection, which is the second most in league history only trailing behind Rasheed Wallace with 25 to his name.

Draymond speaks on his ejection. (via the draymond green show)
pic.twitter.com/8GSmJGGv2B

— TheWarriorsTalk (@TheWarriorsTalk) March 28, 2024

“I’m not going to overreact, like, ‘Oh man!'” the Warriors forward assured on his podcast. “Stuff is never as good as it seems; it’s never as bad as it seems. I know where I am. I understand what I’m doing moving forward. And my position is just make sure that’s the exception and not the rule.”

Despite Green’s on-court antics earning him an ejection, Andrew Wiggins stayed calm and inspired his team to victory. Just in the first half, the forward dropped 13 points.

By the end of the contest, he earned a team-high 23 points, plus 6 rebounds and two blocks over 35 minutes of play. “Just trying to stay aggressive, trying to do whatever I can to get over the hump and get this win,” he told the press after the win. “We’re desperate. We need every win we can get.”

Teammate Stephen Curry recognised Wiggins’ contribution to their triumph. “He won us the game tonight – plain and simple,” he claimed. “I’m just proud of the way he took that challenge on, that he was assertive and aggressive. Whether he makes or misses shots, I could (not) care less. It’s just the ability for him to just be aggressive and take the shots that he knows he can take, put the pressure on the room, he’s knocking down 3s.”

Curry explained why Green must stop getting into trouble because Golden State need him on the floor

Just as Draymond was seen walking to the locker room, Curry was visibly frustrated at the situation. Once the contest was over, he acknowledged how badly they need him on the floor despite his disappointment with his teammate.

“We need him. He knows that. We all know that, so whatever it takes to keep him on the floor, for him to be available, that’s what’s got to happen, especially at this time of year,” he said. “I’ve talked to him plenty of times about it, even tonight, and I’ll continue to talk to him as a teammate and a friend.”

With 8:24 still on the first quarter’s clock, the four-time champ started to argue with referee Ron Acosta after a foul was called on Wiggins. “It’s unfortunate. He deserved it,” said his coach Steve Kerr said after beating the Magic 101-93. “And he’ll bounce back.”

The tactician then praised how Golden State came back from a difficult situation. “It was a gutsy effort in tough circumstances, back-to-back, losing Draymond early” Kerr shared. “And the guys just competed for 48 (minutes). Obviously, we need every game we could get right now so that’s why everybody was pretty emotional.”