On the newest episode of “Dray Day,’’ a podcast by Warriors forward Draymond Green and Bay Area News Group columnist Marcus Thompson II, Green and Thompson broached the topic of Celtics forward Kelly Olynyk.
Green brought up the incident between Olynyk and Wizards forward Kelly OubreJr. in Game 3, which resulted in Oubre’s ejection and subsequent Game 4 suspension. Green said he thought Olynyk flopped, exaggerating the impact of Oubre’s shove. He then said he thought Olynyk crosses the line and questioned whether Oubre’s suspension was warranted.
“Kelly Olynyk is a dirty player, man,’’ said Green. “You do little stuff dirty and then you want to take a charge or something. Like, come on, man. Oubre ain’t hit him that hard, nor should he have been suspended. Y’all already kicked him out the game. So, essentially, he’s getting a game-and-a-half suspension for that?
“Like [Kevin Durant] said last night, ‘But then they wonder why they call the league soft.’ Like, come on, man, it’s playoff basketball . . . Did [Oubre] really do something to harm somebody? Like, come on, man, that’s ridiculous. Why did he get suspended?’’
Green went on to say he doesn’t understand why a player who retaliates after taking a few under-the-radar shots is punished while the instigator goes unscathed.
“You let people get away with stuff and then finally when somebody react, you penalize that guy, but you’re not going to penalize him for continuing to elbow this guy in the face?’’ he said. “I don’t get that.’’
Thompson then mentioned the dust-up between Olynyk and Cavaliers forward Kevin Love from two years ago when the two got tangled and a back-and-forth ensued over whether Olynyk purposefully tried to injure Love’s shoulder, which sidelined him for the rest of that postseason.
“He’s dirty. Dirty player,’’ Green said of Olynyk. “Man, I don’t respect guys like that. I know he’s not like the greatest basketball player of all-time, so maybe he feels like he’s got to do that.’’
After Love’s injury, Olynyk was suspended for the first game of the 2015-16 season, but he insisted he did not hurt Love intentionally.
“I’d love to obviously apologize to him for the misfortune and let him know it’s definitely not my intent, at all,’’ Olynyk told the Globe in 2015. “Just wish him well and hopefully he has a very speedy recovery and can come back and help that team win.’’
A week after the Love-Olynyk incident, Love texted Olynyk to say things were good between the two of them.
Green is no stranger to postseason tiffs.
During the NBA Finals against the Cavaliers last season, Green was suspended for Game 5 after he was assessed a technical foul for a scuffle with LeBron James. That technical was his fourth of the postseason, which triggered the automatic suspension.
Against the Thunder in the Western Conference finals last year, Green was fined $25,000 for kicking Oklahoma City’s Steven Adams in the groin.
This postseason, Green is averaging 14.6 points per game on 50.8 percent shooting, including 50 percent on 3-pointers. He is also averaging 9 rebounds, 6.7 assists, and 3 blocks in these playoffs.
The Warriors own a 3-0 lead over the Jazz in their Western Conference semifinal with Game 4 slated for Monday night. The Celtics and Wizards are tied 2-2 in their conference semifinal.
Lowry will opt out
Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry will opt out of the final year of his contract and test free agency this summer. The three-time All-Star has one year and $12 million remaining on the four-year, $48 million deal he signed in July 2014.
‘‘I want a ring,’’ he said. ‘‘That’s all that drives me. I want to just get better, I want to have fun, I want to win a ring. I want to make sure my family is happy. That’s all I've thought about right now.’’
Lowry averaged career bests of 22.4 points, 7.0 assists, and 4.8 rebounds this season, but was limited to 60 games because of a right wrist injury that required surgery in February.
Sidelined by a sprained left ankle, Lowry was not active Sunday when Toronto was swept in the second round by Cleveland. Lowry was injured in the third quarter of Game 2. He aggravated the injury while trying to warm up for Friday’s Game 3.
An 11-year veteran, Lowry also has played for Memphis and Houston. Lowry, who will be a free agent for the third time, called the experience an emotional roller coaster.
‘‘It’s fun, but it’s a little bit stressful,’’ Lowry said of free agency. ‘‘You’re making a franchise-altering decision, period.’’
Injury KO’s Nene
Rockets backup center Nene has suffered a season-ending muscle tear in his left thigh.
Nene was injured in the first quarter of Houston’s 125-104 win over San Antonio in the Western Conference semifinals Sunday night and didn’t return.
The team said Monday it is reviewing treatment options for the torn adductor muscle.
Nene, a 15-year veteran in his first season with the Rockets, averaged 10 points and 4.7 rebounds in nine postseason games.
He was the star of Game 4 of Houston’s first-round series against Oklahoma City when he tied an NBA record by making all 12 of his shots and scoring a career playoff-high 28 points in a 113-109 win.
