Draymond Green has been suspended indefinitely by the NBA for punching Jusuf Nurkic, and his long-time rival Rudy Gobert has now commented on the situation. Gobert was asked about Green after the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Dallas Mavericks 119-101 on Thursday night, and he was very empathetic.
“I have empathy for him. You see somebody that’s not well inside and suffering. You take away the game and all that, and you want somebody to be well and be able to do what we do every night and compete and be happy.”
Rudy Gobert on Draymond Green: “I have empathy for him. You see somebody that’s not well inside and suffering. You take away the game and all that, and you want somebody to be well and be able to do what we do every night and compete and be happy.” https://t.co/Awol2ow6bs
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) December 15, 2023
Gobert, who is now averaging 13.0 points, 12.2 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 0.7 steals, and 2.4 blocks per game this season, felt harsh measures were required as Green was endangering his opponents with his antics. The 31-year-old isn’t quite sure what to make of this indefinite suspension, however, as he, just like everyone else, has no idea just how much time Green will miss.
When handing down this indefinite suspension, the NBA pointed to Green’s history of unsportsmanlike acts, and the Frenchman knows about them all too well. It was just a month ago that Green had put Gobert in a chokehold, which led to his ejection and a five-game suspension.
Gobert took massive shots at Draymond after the game, but he seems to have realized now that Green needs some help. The 33-year-old has looked completely out of control in recent weeks, and we can only hope that when Green does make his return, he is in a better place mentally and has regained some control over his actions.
Draymond Green Didn’t Realize Just How Long He Had Choked Rudy Gobert
On his return from the five-game suspension for the chokehold, Green said he didn’t regret choking Gobert. In his mind, he was just coming to the defense of his teammate and stated he doesn’t live his life with regrets. Now with some more time having passed, Green claims he didn’t realize just how long he had held Gobert.
“When I watched it back, I said, ‘Damn, I held him much longer than I realized in that moment. But the reality is, in those moments, you don’t know what time is. You don’t have a sense of time. I had no clue. You don’t have a sense of time during these things. It’s the spur of the moment. Everything’s moving, everything’s going.”
The fact that he choked him for about 10 seconds was what was so concerning at the time. Green was not letting go and could have caused some serious harm. Fortunately, Gobert came out unscathed but things could have gone horribly wrong there.
Jusuf Nurkic Says He Still Has Respect For Draymond Green
All this talk about Draymond not being quite right really began from the man whom he struck in the face. Nurkic stated Green needed help and added that he was glad he didn’t try to choke him. While he was taking a shot back then by bringing up the choke, Nurkic now says he still has a lot of respect for Green.
“I have a lot of respect for him, obviously, even before this. I still have it. I don’t know what people go through. It’s not our problem, but he’s an NBA champion for me, Hall of Famer still.”
Jusuf Nurkic says there’s still tons of respect for Draymond Green
“I have a lot of respect for him, obviously, even before this. I still have it. I don’t know what people go through. It’s not our problem, but he’s an NBA champion for me, Hall of Famer still.”
(Via… pic.twitter.com/iF7SFo8tRO
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 14, 2023
Nurkic added that he wants Draymond to be successful and has no bad feelings toward him despite the incident. He believes the NBA will do what’s best for Green and for them with regard to the suspension.
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