Look: Draymond Green ejected for third time this season after hitting Jusuf Nurkic in face

Golden State Warriors and former Michigan State forward Draymond Green was ejected for the third time this season after punching Phoenix's Jusuf Nurkic in the face on Wednesday night.

Green, 33, was defending Nurkic on an in-bound play midway through the third quarter. He was positioned backward to Nurkic and then flailed his arms back in Nurkic's direction, effectively hitting him in the face.

"(Nurkic) was pulling my hip, and I was swinging away to sell the call and made contact with him," Green said after the game. "As you know, I'm not one to apologize for things I meant to do, but I do apologize to Jusuf. I didn't intend to hit him. ... A replay is never gonna look good, but I know my intentions, and my intentions were to sell the call.

"I also don't think I'm an accurate enough puncher to do a full 360 and connect with someone. It's unfortunate."

The four-time All-Star and 2017 NBA Defensive Player of the Year was most recently suspended for five games in mid-November for "forcibly grabbing" Timberwolves forward Rudy Gobert's neck on Nov. 16. He was also ejected on Nov. 11 after receiving two technical fouls in a loss to Cleveland.

After the game, Nurkic also commented on the play.

"What's going on with him? I don't know," Nurkic told reporters. "Personally, I feel like that brother needs help. I'm glad he didn't try to choke me. At the same time, it ain't nothing to do with basketball."

Draymond Green stats 2023

Here are Green's stat averages in 2023:

• Points per game: 9.7

• Rebounds per game: 5.5

• Assists per game: 5.8

• Field-goal percentage: 49%

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Look: Draymond Green ejected again for hitting Jusuf Nurkic in face