Fans raise questions as NBA fines Draymond Green $50,000 for sideline comment about game officials

As if Draymond Green didn’t have enough pressure in the absence of his teammate Stephen Curry, the Golden State Warriors star has been fined $50,000 by the NBA for questioning “the integrity of game officials". The fine was announced by the NBA on Wednesday for Green’s comment made during Game 3 in which the Golden State Warriors lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves 102-97.During Game 3, cameras had captured Draymond Green on the sideline, commenting on the 5.5-point spread during a timeout when the Minnesota Timberwolves was leading 102-94 with 15.2 seconds remaining. NBA enthusiasts have, however, questioned putting fine on a player for comments made on the sideline.The NBA shared a confirmation about the fine on its official X account. ESPN journalist Shams Charania also tweeted, “The NBA has fined Golden State's Draymond Green $50,000 for comments questioning integrity of the game officials, referring to the 5.5 spread number.”Reacting to Charania’s tweet, a fan said, “This is crazy. He said it on the sideline, not to a camera, and they happened to pick it up lip reading. You can’t tell me the NBA doesn’t have an agenda against him smh.” Another said, “Lol wasn’t this something he said jokingly to a teammate someone lip read? Kinda makes me think the league is rigged if they’re gonna fine him for that.”Another reacted with sarcasm, “Remember he is not a angry black man.” A fan also suggested, “Would be nice if the refs could be held accountable just as much as the players.”An X user asked Grok to share some stats about Green’s fine history. Grok tweeted, “Draymond Green's total NBA career fines are approximately $2,231,780. This includes penalties for technical fouls, altercations, and suspensions, such as a $769,704 fine for a five-game suspension in 2023. His latest $50,000 fine was for comments questioning officials' integrity. Despite the high total, these fines are a small fraction of his over $255 million in career earnings.”Commenting on it, a person tweeted, “NBA fines are more like ‘you don't get paid until the fine is paid,’ than paying out of pocket. So they keep his paycheck until the fine is paid.”Also Read: “We're sick of it” — ESPN analyst erupts over Draymond Green’s ‘angry black man’ outburstThe Golden State Warriors will now face the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 and it’s a do-or-die situation. If they lose, it will be the end of season for the Wolves.