The Situation

Ok, let’s set the stage here.

With the game tied up against the Los Angeles Clippers and just five seconds left on the clock, Draymond Green secured a rebound and pushed it up the floor.

Here’s the play in question:

So, you’ve got five seconds, Durant standing there asking for the ball. As Green pushed the ball up the court, Durant trails the play, essentially removing himself from any action given the clock situation.

With two seconds left, Green begins to make his play. Though he has Klay Thompson open for a three to his right, Green instead opts to attempt to split the double team in order to get the ball to either a cutting Kevon Looney, or to Andre Iguodala for a wing jumper.

Instead, Green fumbles the ball away, and the Warriors lose in overtime. Durant is upset, Green is upset... no one is happy.

On Tuesday afternoon, Chris Haynes reported that the team would sit Green against the Atlanta Hawks as disciplinary action, which certainly suggests the team thinks something of the situation. Sam Amick followed that up with a tweet stating that it was Warriors coach Steve Kerr’s decision to have Green sit out tonight’s game.

And Adrian Wojnarowski followed up that report with news of Green officially being suspended for tonight’s game.

So what does this situation mean for the team beyond the suspension for tonight’s game, and how much does it matter?

Here are our thoughts, though they represent our views from before the news broke that Green would be suspended.

What (if anything) did we learn from this?

Daniel Hardee: That Draymond and KD will not miss a chance to shout at each other about anything.

Jannelle Moore: That the Warriors are fine and folks are making a boulder out of a pebble. This is nothing but teammates holding each other accountable. This kerfuffle or whatever you want to call it is no different than a sibling spat. When Green, Durant, or any of them are silent, that’s when you worry.

Tom Bevilacqua: That everyone will jump at the opportunity to criticize KD/make it seem like he doesn’t belong on this team and that there’s real friction there. It’s not someone called someone else “Putino Mobley” or [INSERT STORY ABOUT KOBE BRYANT BEING A PSYCHOPATH HERE].

Brady Klopfer: Hindsight is 20/20, and what we learn from this will be determined from what happens in the aftermath of the event, which, in all likelihood, will be nothing. For now, we didn’t learn something so much as be reminded that these things happen. As Anthony Slater pointed out, these two had a much worse (at least in terms of what happened on the court) spat in Durant’s initial year with the Warriors. Less than 24 hours later, they were watching the Super Bowl together. The most likely scenario is that absolutely nothing comes of this.

Still, we may learn something as more details unfold. Here’s what we do know: That more players than just Durant confronted Green (which is a little surprising), that Klay Thompson was visibly upset (which is rare), and that Durant left the arena before the locker rooms opened to the media (which is rarer than rare). These aren’t giant red flags, but they’re not nothing, either.

That said, I was in the locker room last night, and you would not have any clue that something negative (other than a loss) had transpired. The team certainly didn’t seem at all concerned, and that matters most.

What could we do different moving forward?

Daniel: This team is so talented and has so much confidence, you can’t blame an Olympian for trying to make a play. Still, he may not have had enough time to drive and kick to a shooter, so perhaps a timeout could have been the better move. As always, hindsight is 20/20, and if Dray somehow skips a pass to someone for a game winner, we’re celebrating how gutsy he is.

Jannelle: Moving forward in a situation like this, it wouldn’t hurt to call the timeout. Take that time to set up something for KD or Klay , or Steph when he returns. Granted, that will allow the defense to set up also, but I’ll take my chances. Kerr’s ATO sets are solid.

Tom: Not pay attention to this kind of stuff because it does not matter.

Brady: I don’t think much. Within the confines of a game, Green is notoriously fiery and confrontational, and Durant is wildly defensive and grumpy. These are elements that play integral roles in them being two of the greatest basketball players on the planet. Occasionally, such elements conflict and cause a little explosion, but I don’t think that can be avoided.

Ok, big question: who’s to blame here?

Daniel: Steve Kerr for not providing better direction? LOL idk, this isn’t a big deal to me. We’re on to the Hawks.

Jannelle: The entire Warriors team for letting it get to that point. To me, the game was lost when the Clippers took a 14 point lead. Yeah, Klay almost single handily carried the team to a comeback but best believe that comeback took a lot out of them. The Bigs surrerended 62 points in the paint. Why Jones only snagged one rebound? Bell one rebound? Looney 4? McKinnie and Looney’s moments in overtime. This play is what’s hot in these streets but not the only factor in this loss. No big deal though since it’s only November.

Tom: I do think getting the ball to Durant, even if he’s coming up a bit slower, is the right move to make. Between Durant’s handle, his height, and his ability to drive and get to the free-throw line it probably leads to the best scoring opportunity. Perhaps calling a timeout was the way to go but I like the idea of not totally stopping things. I think we, along with much of NBA Twitter and the more sensationalist elements of basketball media are to blame for making SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING.

Brady: On the court? Both players messed up. Green should have been looking for Durant or Thompson when they were open. And Durant shouldn’t have stood 90 feet from the hoop angrily calling for the ball while precious seconds dwindled. Neither player handled the basketball situation well, and, as I said above, the off-court situation is the result of who they are, and there’s no sense in changing that or allocating blame.