Adam Silver Speaks on Draymond Green, Referees and More
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver explained the decision Sunday not to suspend Golden State Warriors power forward Draymond Green for Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.
In an interview with ESPN's Michelle Beadle and Ramona Shelburne, via theScore's John Chick, Silver discussed how he didn't believe Green intended to kick Oklahoma City Thunder big man Steven Adams in the crotch:
"I hear it and it's the most sensitive issue for me and it goes to the core integrity of the league and frankly to my integrity. All I can say is we do the best we can - I acknowledge that was a close decision on upgrading Draymond's kick to a flagrant-2. Ultimately we made a decision that he did not intentionally try to kick (Adams) in the groin.
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Many thought Green deserved a suspension for the kick, especially after Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dahntay Jones missed one game for striking Toronto Raptors center Bismack Biyombo in the groin. Instead, Green earned a $25,000 fine, and his foul on Adams was upgraded from a flagrant-1 to a flagrant-2.
Poor officiating decisions have been a storyline throughout the NBA playoffs.
The NBA fined Raptors head coach Dwane Casey $25,000 for criticizing the referees in the Eastern Conference Finals.
In its Last Two Minute Report, the league also acknowledged a series of blown calls in the Thunder's Game 2 win over the San Antonio Spurs in the second round. The referees in the first-round series between the Warriors and Houston Rockets also missed an offensive foul on James Harden immediately preceding his game-winning shot in Game 3.
"There's no doubt that human error is a part of this game," Silver said about the missed calls, per Chick. "What the best you can hope for is the fans believing in the integrity of the officials, and that no one has a finger on the scale."
And of course, a small contingent of fans will always say the league is working behind the scenes to ensure the biggest markets and/or most prominent stars advance in the playoffs. Silver summarily dismissed the arguments:
"I've been around the league long enough that I hear these conspiracy theories every year - that's not unique to this year - and I'll say in the case of Oklahoma City, that they have two players on that team who are global superstars.
One of the points I've made consistently since we negotiated the last collective bargaining agreement, and when you throw social media into the mix, is that players can be located anywhere these days and be superstars, that the difference in market size is not significant when we're talking about a global market.
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Silver and his cohorts in the league office are still likely pleased with what is shaping up to be an entertaining NBA Finals. LeBron James and the Cavs will either get a rematch with the defending champion Warriors, or they'll face off with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the Thunder as they seek redemption after falling to the James-led Miami Heat in the 2012 NBA Finals.
