Draymond Green was missed the Warriors' Game 5 loss to the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals because he was suspended for exceeding the allowed number of flagrant points.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver joined The Dan Patrick Show this week and defended the league's decision to upgrade Green's foul to a Flagrant 1, which resulted in a one-game suspension.
"The question becomes, 'Should we have not had given him a Flagrant 1 knowing that the outcome would be for him to be suspended?'" Silver said. "And I can only imagine what people would have said on the other side of the argument, had we not given the flagrant when we saw an act -- an act, to Draymond's credit, he acknowledged it, there was no dispute as to what happened. The referees did not see it on the floor. There's also no question they didn't see it and decide it wasn't a flagrant.
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"They didn't see that act when he swiped over at LeBron and hit him in the groin area, and that is a flagrant our league. I will say in the case of Draymond, I think he knows it, that he wasn't about to get the benefit of the doubt, either, based on his prior conduct and and the purpose of that rule."
Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy, whose career ended in a 2007 scandal, went public with his belief that the league chose to suspend Green in order to prolong the series.
[RELATED: Former referee Donaghy: NBA suspended Green to prolong series]
Green will be back in the Warriors lineup when they face the Cavaliers in Game 6 Thursday night in Cleveland.
Golden State Warriors
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