Golden State Warriors veteran and known instigator Draymond Green has never been one to shy away from controversy, but his latest take on NBA discipline might surprise you. Speaking on his podcast, Green openly acknowledged that San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama likely deserves a suspension for his flagrant foul on Karl-Anthony Towns in Game 4 of the NBA Finals — and then immediately defended the league for not handing one down.
“He probably should be suspended at some point or have been already. He’s been shown a lot of grace, but I agree with the grace,” Green said on The Draymond Green Show. “We want to see Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs versus the New York Knicks. Not the San Antonio Spurs sans Victor Wembanyama versus the New York Knicks. So, I agree.”
The sequence in question occurred late in the fourth quarter of the Spurs’ stunning collapse in Game 4, where they blew a 29-point lead to the Knicks in emphatic fashion. Wembanyama fouled Towns hard on a drive, leading to a flagrant-1 call — his second flagrant foul of the series after avoiding suspension for a shove on Jalen Brunson in Game 3. Heading into Game 5, Wembanyama is one flagrant foul away from an automatic one-game ban.
Green, never one to mince words, framed the league’s decision as pure business calculus. “That’s a business decision,” he added. “And I’m sorry to tell you all. I know I probably should be like ‘man, that’s bulls***’ — that’s the right decision.”
For Green, the calculus is simple: The NBA Finals are a ratings goldmine, and sidelining a generational talent like Wembanyama — who is making his first Finals appearance — would alienate casual fans and diehards alike. “I wish the NBA would just come out and say yeah, most cases this probably should be a suspension, but it’s not because we want our best in the NBA Finals, and that’s the way it should be,” Green said.
The Spurs now face elimination Saturday night in San Antonio, trailing the Knicks 3-1 in the series. A win forces a Game 6 back at Madison Square Garden, but history isn’t kind to teams down 3-1 in the Finals. And Wembanyama, for his part, is done dwelling on the past.
“Of course, there were 1,000 ways that we could have not lost that game,” Wembanyama told reporters. “But it feels like there was a time to process that and really dwell on it, but not anymore.”
Whether that forward-looking mindset helps the Spurs avoid another collapse remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: The NBA is willing to bend its own rules to keep the marquee matchup intact, and Draymond Green — of all people — is fine with that.
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