“Taylor Jenkins Took A Dive”: Draymond Green Claims Unnamed Warriors Star Witnessed Grizzlies Tactics To Milk Ugly Scuffle

The Golden State Warriors registered a comfortable 137-116 win against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday, but the game was not without its share of drama. In the second quarter of the game, a scuffle broke out between Draymond Green and Salti Aldama under the basket, prompting Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins to approach a referee during the next stoppage of play. Draymond approached to listen, which escalated into a shoving match between him and Desmond Bane, and in the process, they knocked over Taylor Jenkins. However, as per Green’s version of events, Jenkins intentionally took a ‘dive’ during the incident.

In the recent episode of The Draymond Green Show, the Golden State Warriors forward broke down the details of the altercation, exposing the Grizzlies coach’s tactics to get him ejected. “GP [Gary Payton II] grabbed my arms from another side, I didn’t know it was GP, so I was pulling my arms away from GP. Then Taylor Jenkins took a dive. And Taylor Jenkins milked it… Their trainer comes up to him, and one of our players, I’m not going to name the player because it’s pretty irrelevant to name the player, but he’s walking back to our bench and the trainer asks Taylor Jenkins, like you okay? Like, hey, what’s going on? And he’s like… trying to milk it, and that to me is absolutely insane,” said Green.

However, despite Jenkins’ efforts to get Draymond Green ejected, he finished with nearly a triple-double, mustering 10 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists to lead the Warriors to a season-series win over the Grizzlies. While tempers flaring in a Grizzlies vs. Warriors game is nothing new, this one had an unexpected ending.

Unexpected ending to the Warriors-Grizzlies scuffle

In recent seasons, the Warriors and Grizzlies have developed a rivalry of sorts, which ignited when the Grizzlies booted the Warriors out of playoff contention during the 2021 Play-In tournament. Following their victory, Jaren Jackson Jr. taunted the Warriors by mocking their “Strength in Numbers” slogan.

The following year, the Warriors exacted revenge by defeating the Grizzlies in the Western Conference semifinals with a 4–2 series win. The Warriors ultimately went on to win their fourth championship that season. Klay Thompson wasted no time in responding to Jackson’s earlier tweet, labeling him a “bum” who had never “been there before.”

The rivalry between the two teams continued into the 2022-23 season, with Dillon Brooks expressing his disdain for Draymond Green and the Warriors. However, unlike their previous controversies, this one ended on a rather positive note, with Green and Bane shaking hands in a show of respect for one another.

Maybe all that counseling after his ‘indefinite suspension’ for striking Phoenix Suns’ center Jusuf Nurkic is working its magic. Both Green and Bane were assessed with double technical fouls, but nobody was ejected.

Read More: Intense Scuffle Mid-Game Was Scary for Steve Kerr; Claims He Hated Coach Jenkins Getting Hurt