Why Draymond Green orchestrated to play against Memphis on Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Draymond Green has been back with the Warriors for the last week, getting back on the court after stepping away from the game to serve an indefinite suspension from the NBA after hitting Jusuf Nurkic in the face a month after choking out Rudy Gobert.
In his absence, the Warriors have fallen below .500 and are in an existential crisis as an organization. In what is theoretically good news for Golden State, Green will be back in the lineup on Monday when they visit the Memphis Grizzlies on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, according to Shams Charania.
The Grizzlies have their own issues at the moment, with injuries piling up, most notably Ja Morant suffering a season-ending shoulder injury, but it is a particularly interesting team for Green to return against given the tense recent history between the Warriors and Grizzlies. It will certainly be a test of whether Green has in fact taken strides over the past few weeks with regards to keeping his emotions in check on the floor, as Memphis has historically looked to get under the Warriors skin.
Golden State could certainly use Green’s defensive impact on the floor, and they’ll want to see how the team reacts with him back in the fold as they approach the trade deadline with just about everything on the table for them in terms of possible deals.
Warriors’ Draymond Green’s target return date revealed
Draymond Green is ready to rock once again.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reported Sunday that the Golden State Warriors star Green is expected to make his return to the court for the team on Monday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
It will mark a return on Martin Luther King Jr. Day for Green, who has missed the last 16 games.
The former Defensive Player of the Year was suspended indefinitely by the league for striking Jusuf Nurkic in the head during a game on Dec. 12 (video here).
He ended up serving an official suspension of 12 games before being reinstated but missed four more due to a ramp-up period for his return to play.
Green has since spoken out about his suspension and made a noteworthy claim about it. While it remains to be seen how Green will behave upon his return to the court, the 18-21 Warriors certainly need him from a basketball standpoint (though they did manage to go 8-8 in the games Green missed).
Leave a Reply