Draymond, that I viewed as a flail that is becoming, you know, pretty common amongst our players in trying to sell calls. Draymond does it a fair amount, Westbrook does it a fair amount, and a number of other players. Unfortunately, in this particular one, Draymond’s leg connected in the same Adams groin area, the same area, as the Jones one, but everything else about the call, or the play, was really different. And you know, again, the ball was knocked out of Draymond’s hands, he went up, trying to sell a call, he flails his arm, he flails his leg, and so at that point, when the contact was made, I think we felt that something more, some additional penalty was warranted, so that’s what we did.
Basically: The play was reckless, but in the context of the game and the way Draymond has behaved in the past, it looks like a flailing attempt to get a foul call.
This is different than when a guy makes a closed fist and connects with another player's body in an apparently intentional way.
That said, do I think it's likely that in the heat of the moment Draymond didn't particularly care whether his flailing happened to hit Adams? Absolutely, I do. That's why you assess the guy with a Flagrant.
And if you think this sort of play is a threat to player safety in the game and the series as a whole, assess a Flagrant Two. But do it in game, not after the fact.
We wouldn't want the NBA giving the teams handicaps based on calls they decide they missed late in the game in an earlier part of the series. So why suspend a guy after the fact for a call that should have been more severe at the time?