SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green was suspended indefinitely by the NBA on Wednesday, less than 24 hours after he hit Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face, received a Flagrant 2 foul and was ejected from the game.
The league said the penalty handed down by operations chief Joe Dumars begins immediately. This is already Green’s second suspension this season.
“He will be required to meet certain league and team conditions before he returns to play,” the league said in a release, also noting that “this outcome takes into account Green’s repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts.”
The Warriors didn’t have a prepared statement in response but said Green’s suspension would be addressed during the team’s shootaround Thursday in Los Angeles ahead of a game against the Clippers.
The 33-year-old Green, part of four championships with the Warriors, was ejected for the 18th time in his career, the most among active NBA players. As the Warriors were inbounding the ball near their own bench early in the third quarter in a 119-116 loss at Phoenix on Tuesday night, Green and Nurkic were fighting for position in a corner near the baseline, and the two tangled. Green appeared to slip slightly, then pivoted around right into Nurkic with his right arm connecting with the big man’s face.