Earlier this week, USA Basketball released a provisional roster of 41 players who are being considered for the men’s roster ahead of the Olympic Games in Paris this summer. There is a whole lot of pressure on the Americans, which are looking to win their fifth consecutive gold medal at the event but are coming off of a disappointing fourth place finish at the FIBA Basketball World Cup.
The level of competition in the international game is as high as it’s ever been, so the provisional roster featured a number of experienced players who have gotten the job done at this level. Curiously, one name that was left off the list was Draymond Green, who played a role on each of the last two Olympic squads and suits up for USA coach Steve Kerr as a member of the Golden State Warriors. During a media call on Wednesday, USA Basketball executive director Grant Hill got asked specifically about Green’s omission, and pointed to the on-court incidents involving Green that have put him in some hot water over the last year.
“His contributions have been significant, and he is a real part of the legacy of this organization for his excellence,” Hill said, per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. “But I think just in lieu of sort of what’s transpired this year, we made a decision to not have [Green] on this list with this particular point in time with the process.”
While Hill did not go into specific incidents, Green has received three separate suspensions from the NBA dating back to April, when he received a 1-game ban after a stomp on Domantas Sabonis during the playoffs. This season, Green got a 5-game suspension for putting Rudy Gobert in a chokehold, and shortly after he came back, he received an indefinite suspension (which ended up lasting 12 games) for hitting Jusuf Nurkic in the head.