Draymond Green reinstated after serving 12 games of indefinite suspension
Draymond Green's indefinite suspension is over.
The Warriors' star forward has been reinstated by the NBA after missing 12 games, the league announced Saturday. Green, who received an indefinite suspension on Dec. 13, was deemed by the NBA to have "completed steps that demonstrated his commitment to conforming his conduct to standards expected of NBA players."
"He has engaged in meeting with a counselor and has met jointly on multiple occasions with representatives of the NBA, the Warriors, and the National Basketball Players Association, both of which will continue through the season," the league added in a statement.
Green received the indefinite suspension a day after he struck Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face during a game. He received a Flagrant 2 for the play, marking the third time he'd been ejected from a game this season. The indefinite suspension was levied on Green just a couple of weeks after he returned from a five-game suspension in November, which he received after putting Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert in a headlock.
The NBA said Green's "repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts" went into its decision to give him a rare indefinite suspension in December.
"He will be required to meet certain league and team conditions before he returns to play," the NBA said in its statement at the time, which noted that the suspension was handed down by operations chief Joe Dumars.
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In the days after Green's meeting with the league, he reportedly began counseling. He was reportedly expected to miss a few weeks, but ESPN reported Thursday that Green was preparing to return to the Warriors' facility in the coming days.
The final game of Green's 12-game suspension was on Friday, which was a close win over the Pistons. Friday's win came a day after a devastating loss to the Nuggets, in which Nikola Jokić hit a halfcourt heave at the buzzer to win the game. The Warriors were able to withstand Green's absence though, going 7-5 as they improved to 17-18. They sit in 10th place in the Western Conference and are 3.5 games back from the pivotal sixth seed as of Jan. 6.
Green, who played a pivotal role in the Warriors' run to four titles over the previous nine seasons, re-signed with the team on a four-year, $100 million deal this past offseason following speculation of a possible breakup. The suspension cost Green 12 game checks of $153,941 thus far.
Green is scoring 9.7 points per game, but his 5.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game are the lowest he's averaged since Steve Kerr became the Warriors' head coach in the 2014-15 season.