Draymond Green has generated a very controversial reputation for himself as a bit of an aggressive and dirty player. His long history with technical fouls speaks for itself. It has gotten to a point where Green plays in an openly aggressive manner, committing fouls that are occasionally completely ignored.
From the ongoing Boston vs Golden State series in the NBA Finals, there have already been plenty of examples of Draymond being excessive in terms of how he tried to defend against opponents. He grabbed Jayson Tatum by the neck and threw him to the ground in an attempt to box the Celtics star out, an extremely aggressive play for someone on a simple box out.
Aggressive plays are not new to Draymond, and plays like that won’t surprise many of the players on this Boston team. Marcus Smart got to see it first hand in his early days with the Celtics before the likes of Tatum and Brown were even drafted. Draymond brutally tackled Smart and his teammate, Evan Turner, in an attempt to get himself open.
These plays have unfortunately become signature to Draymond in the modern NBA, as many have thrown criticism at him for such plays throughout his career. He keeps getting away with it. As long as referees don’t penalize him, there is nothing really that can be done. Green has a reputation and has used it well to avoid calls.
Whether Green tones down his physical play through the rest of the series is something that fans will see as the series plays out. There is no incentive for him to play any different, with Draymond criticizing himself for being ‘soft’ in Game 3.
If hard fouling is what makes the difference, the Celtics should be worried about their players. If Draymond comes with the intention to be this kind of an enforcer, maybe an escalation by officials is what will restrain him from such plays.
