Fan ejected for threatening the life of Warriors’ star Draymond Green
A heated match-up game between the Golden State Warriors and Milwaukee Bucks led to a fan ejection. Warriors’ power forward Draymond Green accused a fan of threatening his life.
Not only Stephen Curry and coach Steve Kerr received technical fouls during the game for arguing calls, but also Draymond Green. The four-time All-Star had a quick exchange with a fan.
In the third quarter of the game with Giannis Antetokounmpo, a fan sitting courtside taunted Draymond Green. He responded before running to the other end of the court. After a minute, on Green’s next stop, he pointed out the fan to the referee. The latter then went on to notify security.
"What's that pass? What's the pass? I would love to know what that pass is. You ain’t sh*t… I thought so. Explain yourself if you want to be heard."
This Draymond Green exchange with the ejected Bucks fan 🗣️pic.twitter.com/bhPhBqfszt
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) December 14, 2022
After Green and the referee spoke, officials ejected the fan. The referee talked to his colleagues, and they decided to eject the person. Green told the reporters that the fan said, “some threatening stuff to my life.”
Green explained, “I was this close to really going back and diving all the way in, but just went back and told the official. And when I told the official, he said, He’s got to get out of here.”
The Warriors star also said via ESPN, “There are no real consequences. Yeah, you can’t come back to the game, or even if you get arrested, nothing really happens. You just hope it gets to the point to where these leagues can work with legislators to implement laws because that’s the only thing that’s going to ultimately correct the issue, is if you know something real is going to happen to you.”
After the game, Green also spoke to the reporters. He said, “Some people look at NBA players like they’re superhuman. That they’re this larger-than-life figure. So you come, and you get someone to say something back, and they get fined. They go home and laugh with their buddies. I think it’s just one of those things when you can hold it in and get to the ref and get them out; it’s great.”
Draymond Green spoke about the exchange he had with a fan who was later ejected from Tuesday's game in Milwaukee.
More: https://t.co/MWqI4g7HId pic.twitter.com/h14DT7fA9v
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) December 14, 2022
Moreover, this is not the first time Green encountered such a feat from fans. On Nov.29, Green bantered with a fan which caused him to pay a fine worth $25,000. The NBA decided to issue the fine.
Green also acknowledged the NBA for taking issues like this seriously. But he also mentioned the league’s response to fine players. “They jump and fine guys for saying something back. I think when you see guys get fined, it’s more often a license for more people to do it.”
The Warriors’ player also believes that it would take someone outside of the NBA league to apply significant changes to fan decorum. In addition, the changing dynamic between NBA players and fans has been an ongoing issue even in the previous seasons. It has also been the source of disagreement between NBA teams and the officials.
Moreover, Trae Young, Ja Morant, Russell Westbrook, and Kyrie Irving also didn’t escape such fan incidents. The fan rages from the last two seasons include throwing objects and even racial slurs.
As for NBA’s part, they have been working with the teams regarding security and law enforcement. They are working closely to impose more severe penalties on fan misbehaviors. The league aims to diminish a growing curb that is no longer just simple incidents. In 2021, Kyrie Irving was also a victim of a fan incident. The fan threw a water bottle at him, and officials charged him with felony assault and battery.
