Draymond Ejected, Warriors Reignite: How a Meltdown Sparked a Defensive Revival
The Warriors were staring down the barrel of a fourth straight loss Saturday night. Down 11 early to a Suns team that came out firing, Golden State looked flat, outmatched, and on the verge of unraveling. Then Draymond Green got tossed-and somehow, that changed everything.
Green’s ejection in the second quarter wasn’t subtle. After shoving Collin Gillespie in transition, Green immediately turned his frustration toward lead official Pat Fraher.
Two quick technicals, and he was gone. Just like that, the Warriors lost their emotional anchor.
But instead of crumbling, they found their edge.
“When We’re Together, We’re Dangerous”
“Once he’s out of there, we know we all got to come together,” Gary Payton II said after the game. And that’s exactly what they did.
It wasn’t just a rally-it was a reset. The Suns had torched Golden State for 44 points in the first quarter, including five dunks that had Chase Center on edge.
But after Green’s exit, the Warriors clamped down. Phoenix shot just 31.8% across the second and third quarters, and the tone of the game completely shifted.
Stephen Curry pointed to the ejection as the team’s wake-up call.
“I think it woke us up,” Curry said. “Without him, we’re going to have to play even tougher.”
And they did. The Warriors turned defense into offense, found their rhythm, and clawed their way back into the game-and the win column-snapping a three-game skid in the process.
Kerr Still Fuming Over Officiating
While the team responded well on the court, head coach Steve Kerr was still heated postgame-more about what led up to Saturday than what happened during it.
Kerr called Green’s ejection “weak,” and used the moment to revisit a hit from Thursday’s game that still had him fuming. That’s when Dillon Brooks, in Kerr’s words, threw a “premeditated” punch to Curry’s midsection. Brooks was assessed a flagrant one after review, but avoided both an ejection and a suspension.
“How can you not be upset?” Kerr said, clearly still frustrated.
He referenced Brooks’ history, including the infamous 2022 playoff incident that left Payton with a broken elbow. “I don’t know what the point of replay is if you’re not gonna kick a guy out for literally punching somebody.”
Kerr’s message was clear: the league’s inconsistency on discipline is wearing thin, especially when it involves repeat offenders.
Rookie Delivers, Veteran Sits
Saturday’s win wasn’t just about emotion and defense-it was also about a bold lineup decision that paid off.
Rookie Will Richard got the nod over veteran sharpshooter Buddy Hield, who was a healthy scratch for the first time in 199 games. The move wasn’t easy, and Kerr didn’t pretend otherwise.
“I felt terrible,” he said. “But we needed to get Will back out there. You can see why.”
Richard responded with 20 points, bringing energy and scoring punch that helped swing the momentum. Hield, to his credit, handled the benching like a pro-just as Kerr expected.
Sometimes, the right move is the uncomfortable one. Saturday night, it worked. The Warriors got the jolt they needed-partly from a rookie stepping up, partly from a veteran stepping aside, and partly from a firestorm that started with Draymond Green doing what Draymond Green does.
In the end, the Warriors found something they’d been missing: urgency, unity, and a little bit of chaos-fueled clarity.