Draymond Green’s reign of nut shot terror may be coming to an end

Every year, NBA officials pledge to pay closer attention to notable rule violations that frustrated fans and teams the previous season. But this year’s list leads off in an amusing place after Draymond Green’s playoff adventures: nut shots.

From Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press:

The hits to the groin — termed “unnatural acts” by the league — are a point of emphasis after a number of situations involving Green during the postseason. Golden State’s All-Star forward had a habit of flailing his arms or legs and a few times made contact with opponents in the groin area.

In case you forgot about Green’s transgressions, here’s a reminder:

Here’s another reminder:

To be fair, this stretches beyond Green and into the general act of players kicking their legs out on jumpers in an attempt to draw a foul. The idea isn’t just to curb Green. It’s also to stop plays like this long-forgotten Russell Westbrook flail earlier in the playoffs. This also isn’t the only preseason referee point of emphasis — officials say they’ll call traveling off the catch more closely and want to limit contact away from the ball.

But it sure sounds like curbing nut shots is goal No. 1, which is a long time coming. It would have been nuts for the league to ignore this growing trend. Still, if they’re groining to be successful, it’ll be important for officials to keep their eyes on the balls this season.