Golden State's Draymond Green has been a pain in the ass for Warrior's opponents seemingly forever. He is The Dubs' emotional leader, and it showed in Game 2 of the Finals against the Boston Celtics.
Green set the tone early. Game 2 was barely underway when Green tied up Al Horford for a jump ball. Later in the contest, Draymond contested a 3-pointer by Jaylen Brown and both ended up on the floor. A minor physical confrontation took place, and it became clear that Dray was out to antagonize the Celtics players and mentally and physically disrupt Ime Udoka's plans.
Most NBA fans will agree that the rules change in the NBA post-season, particularly in the Finals. When the Green-Brown dust-up occurred, Draymond had already had one technical foul to his (dis)credit. He knew he could get away with some misbehavior, with the refs reluctant to call a second technical, resulting in his expulsion from the game (per Washington Post's Candace Buckner):
What would be a technical foul in the regular season, even if the offending player has already mucked the game up into his personal Thunderdome, should be a tech in any game, on any date. The rules in October should be the rules in June.
But they aren’t. And (Draymond) Green probably knew he could get away with trying to bully the Celtics well after he received his first technical in the first quarter. He’s that savvy and smart.
Green's antics continued when he crashed into several Celtics players, thereby allowing Steph Curry to sink an uncontested shot. He took "moving screen" to a different level.
Expect Dray's aggression to continue in Game 3 and beyond. How the refs react could go a long way towards determining the 2022 NBA Champ. The referees need to pretend it is October and make the calls accordingly.
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