Draymond Green suffers the 24th expulsion of his career after a hostile encounter with the referee
NEWNow you can listen to News articles!
Golden State Warriors player Draymond Green was ejected from Saturday’s game against the Utah Jazz, marking the 24th ejection of his career and 22nd ejection of the regular season. It was also the second in the last eight games.
Green ranks second in most ejections among NBA players all-time, just five behind Rasheed Wallace, who holds the record with 29. Green also leads all active NBA leaders in technical fouls with 208, and passed Anthony Mason for seventh place on the all-time leaderboard on Saturday. Green needs three more techs to pass Dwight Howard and 60 more techs later to pass Dennis Rodman and enter the top 5.
Green’s most recent penalty was imposed after he defended Utah’s Kyle Filipowski, who gestured to a nearby referee calling for a three-second violation against Green. Green then let out an angry yell after the Jazz scored, leading to a technical foul.
After the whistle, Green approached referee Kevin Cutler and appeared to loudly berate the referee. Shortly after that antics, a second technical foul was called and Green was out of the game.
Green’s teammates and coach Steve Kerr defended the oft-ejected player after the game.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON News
Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors reacts against the Pistons at Little Caesars Arena on January 9, 2025 in Detroit. (Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
“I didn’t hear what he said, but he was quick,” Kerr told reporters. “I know he got the T right away and then Kevin (Cutler) dumped him almost immediately. So I don’t know what he said, but I’m assuming it was something Kevin just wasn’t going to hear. So I don’t know anything more about it than that.”
RUSSELL WESTBROOK MAKES NBA HISTORY BY PASSING OSCAR ROBERTSON IN A SCORING MILESTONE
Kerr added that the team “needs” Green on the court.
“We need Draymond and I want him there,” Kerr said. “So I think I could have up to nine coaches. We’re not even halfway through the season yet, so there’s a long way to go and we need it.”
Warriors superstar Steph Curry suggested Green’s actions did not warrant ejection.
“I don’t know what he said to the referee,” Curry said. “But I didn’t think it was; the consensus in the dressing room was that there wasn’t enough to get him sent off.”
Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green yells at the referee during the Orlando Magic game on Dec. 22, 2025, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Justine Willard)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE News APP
The Warriors won the game 123-114 to improve to 19-17.
Green and Kerr previously had a heated incident on the bench during their game against the Orlando Magic in December.
Follow News Digital sports coverage in Xand subscribe to the News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Jackson Thompson is a sports reporter for News Digital covering critical political and cultural issues in sports, with an investigative lens. Jackson’s reporting has been cited in federal government actions related to Title IX enforcement and in mainstream media outlets such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The News and ESPN.com.