On the floor right after the Game 2 of the first-round clash between the Warriors and Kings, Domantas Sabonis seemed to indicate he didn’t have much of an issue with the incident that led to Draymond Green’s ejection, when the Warriors forward was issued a Flagrant 2 foul for stomping on Sabonis’ chest.
“No, we’re both fighting for the rebound,” Sabonis said when asked if he had any animosity about the play. “We fouled each other, stuff happens, it’s basketball, we got to move on to the next play.”
The play in question took place in the fourth quarter, when Sabonis fell to the ground and grabbed Green’s ankle, only for Green to push off of Sabonis’ chest to break free of the grab. Sabonis was issued a technical for his part in the play.
In the locker room, he sang a different tune.
“When I fell, I was protecting myself, and then the incident happened,” Sabonis said. “There is no room for that in our game today.”
Sabonis’ message is in line with his head coach Mike Brown’s. Brown offered a fairly melodramatic tone after the game, mentioning that Sabonis would undergo X-Rays and suggesting that the NBA should review the incident for a possible suspension on Green.
Markus Boucher discussed the possibility of a suspension on Tuesday morning. Listen below:
When asked about if he grabbed Draymond’s ankle, Sabonis didn’t really answer the question.
“I feel like it’s the playoffs, a lot of things happen. At that point it got pushed, I’m falling on the floor, I’m just trying to protect myself. Whatever happened, happened.”
Draymond said postgame that he had no option but to stomp on Sabonis.
“My leg got grabbed — the second time in two nights — and the referee is just watching,” Green said. “I got to land my foot somewhere, and I’m not the most flexible person, so it’s not stretching that far. … I can only step so far with someone pulling my leg away.”