Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green was ejected from a recent NBA in-season tournament game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The incident which involved Green placing Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert in a headlock took place in the first two minutes of the game.
Green’s actions were similar to something that happened to Karl-Anthony Towns in 2019. The brawl started when Warriors’ Klay Thompson and Timberwolves’ Jaden McDaniels started shoving each other, and when Gobert tried to break things up, Green grabbed him.
League needs to chill with choking Timberwolves players 😂 pic.twitter.com/O77uKtFChB
— NBA Memes (@NBAMemes) November 15, 2023
The 7-foot Gobert was dragged away in a headlock by Green, similar to the 2019 incident where Ben Simmons put Towns in a chokehold. The scuffle led to the ejection of Thompson, McDaniels, and Green.
Karl-Anthony Towns got choked out by Ben Simmons in 2019
The 2019 incident involving Karl-Anthony Towns and Ben Simmons happened during a game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Minnesota Timberwolves. It started with an off-the-ball incident between Joel Embiid and Towns and quickly escalated into a fight.
THINGS ARE ESCALATING IN PHILLY WITH KAT AND EMBIID GOING AT IT. pic.twitter.com/7nNhWnCHFv
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) October 31, 2019
During the fight, Simmons, then a 76ers star was on top of Towns, applying a headlock. The image of Towns tapping out like a defeated UFC fighter became a symbol of that night. Both Towns and Embiid were ejected for their roles in the fight, whereas Simmons interestingly remained in the game.
Why was Rudy Gobert not ejected like Draymond Green?
The recent scuffle involving Draymond Green and Rudy Gobert raised questions about the ejections and penalties. While Green, Thompson, and McDaniels were ejected, Gobert remained in the game.
According to crew chief Tyler Ford, Gobert was seen as a “peacemaker,” attempting to separate Thompson and McDaniels during the altercation. Ford explained that Green’s action of putting Gobert in a headlock was considered “unnecessary and excessive,” justifying the flagrant foul penalty 2 and subsequent ejection.
Draymond Green had Rudy Gobert on a headlock 😳
(via @NBCSWarriors)
pic.twitter.com/3o2EowcytX— Ball Don’t Lie (@Balldontlie) November 15, 2023
“He aggressively put Gobert in a headlock and refuses to let go. This is unnecessary and excessive conduct which meets the standard for a flagrant foul penalty 2,” Ford Said. “Gobert was attempting to separate Thompson and McDaniels and was ruled to be a peacemaker. We reviewed all other players and acts and no other unsportsmanlike acts were observed.”
Whereas Gobert’s involvement was not seen as aggressive or provocative, which is why he avoided ejection. With the Warriors already missing star player Stephen Curry due to injury, losing key players early in the game was a major setback, as the team struggled to recover from their narrow defeat to the Timberwolves.