Due to the Golden State Warriors‘ victory over the Sacramento Kings in Game 7, they are now officially going on and maintaining their chances of defending their championship. Veteran forward Draymond Green was not happy with Domantas Sabonis.
Green was given a seven-game suspension for stomping on Sabonis’ chest during the Kings’ matchup, which might have lost his side the series.
Luckily for Golden State, the Warriors were able to win one game without Green, and they will now play the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round.
Even while it appeared that Green had moved on from this incident as the team advanced, the four-time NBA champion blasted the Kings star on his podcast for not shaking hands with him following Game 7 according to TheVolumeSports.
“Lost a lot of respect for Sabonis. You don’t shake guys hands after you lose? I don’t respect that You lost, deal with it. Pay your respect.”
Draymond Green
(via @TheVolumeSports)pic.twitter.com/34OfVkYOkd
ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 1, 2023
Ironically, after defeating the Memphis Grizzlies in six games, LeBron James recently done the same thing to them.
James and Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks got into a highly public fight because Brooks publicly declared that he didn’t appreciate any athlete who hadn’t scored 40 points against him.
As for Green, it’s difficult not to feel at least a little sympathy for Sabonis since no one would want to shake hands with someone who had just trampled on their chest.
Sabonis wasn’t entirely blameless, either; it was obvious that he was grabbing onto Green’s leg in an effort to elicit a reaction, which was ideal for the Kings.
This most certainly won’t be the last time Green has a dispute with a rival athlete, nor will it be the last time he publicly criticizes or mocks a player on his podcast.