NBA

'Basketball play': Warriors' Gary Payton II downplays flagrant foul from Grizzlies' Dillon Brooks

and others

• 3 min read

(NBAE via Getty Images)

When the Warriors take the floor for Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, they'll be without defensive ace Gary Payton II, who has been out since he suffered a fractured left elbow after a hard foul from Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks.

While Brooks' foul drew the ire of Warriors head coach Steve Kerr and a number of Warriors players, Payton spoke with the media for the first time since the incident and shared that he harbors no hard feelings.

MORE: Steve Kerr sounds off on controversial play by Dillon Brooks

"NBA playoff foul. That's about it," Payton told reporters when asked what he thought of the flagrant. "It is what it is — it happened, I just didn't catch myself. Things happen, but it's past me, it's behind me."

Gary Payton II on the flagrant foul that fractured his elbow: "NBA playoff foul. That's about it."

Payton said Dillon Brooks reached out to him: "We talked. It's all good. Basketball play. I know he didn't mean it."

Full soundbite pic.twitter.com/p9O2WetiWg
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) May 15, 2022

No hard feelings, no bad blood — it's all good. It's playoff basketball.

Ruled a Flagrant 2 on the floor, Brooks was suspended one game for his foul and when he was asked about it, he said that "if I could take it back, I would."

While Payton was ruled out indefinitely with a fractured left elbow, a return for the NBA Finals has not yet been ruled out.

MORE: Injury update and timeline for Gary Payton II

How long will Gary Payton II be out?

The Warriors offered an update on May 5, saying that Payton will be re-evaluated in two weeks. That means he will be sidelined through the start of the Western Conference Finals, which will tip-off on May 18.

Head coach Steve Kerr said the Warriors won't rule Payton out for the conference finals but added his chances of returning that soon would be a "longshot."

Gary Payton II won't play to open the conference finals, but has been able to keep conditioning up since it's elbow injury.
Steve Kerr: "We're not ruling him out of the whole conference finals. We're not saying he's going to play either." Called it a "longshot" but "possibility."
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) May 15, 2022