The latest terrible night for the Golden State Warriors started in the third quarter. At halftime, Steve Kerr made some bold rotation changes in an attempt to jump-start a sluggish starting team. He sat Andrew Wiggins and Kevon Looney and moved Draymond Green to center to speed up the game and, in Kerr’s words, “create more space for Steph Curry.”

It worked for a while.

“You saw how he got that layup on the first play of the half,” Kerr said of Green.

But nothing has worked for the 10-13 Warriors in 23 games. Green’s inconsistent availability has contributed to the dilemma. He is still their second most significant player. However, in order for it to matter, he must remain on the field and out of the league’s disciplinary procedure.

As the third quarter clock approached nine minutes, the Warriors maintained their five-point advantage. Green attempted to free himself in the far right corner near the Warriors’ bench for a post feed. Jusuf Nurki was doing it with his right hand on Green’s right hip. Green made a 360 turn and flailed his arms in an effort to grab the official’s attention. His right forearm smoked Nurki across the left face with considerable power.

It sent Nurki crashing to the ground for approximately a minute, causing the authorities to do an automatic review. It didn’t take long at all. Green was expelled for a Flagrant 2 and sprinted to the locker room without arguing, later admitting it was justified.

“I didn’t mean to put the team in a bad situation,” Green said. “I made contact with him with the intent of getting a foul. To Steve’s point, I must be present for us to win. That is something I am aware of. That’s why I haven’t argued with officials since I returned, and I haven’t gotten into it with any players since I returned. Because I am aware of this. Regrettably, awful luck. I made contact with him while attempting to draw a foul. But this isn’t the same as them.”

With or without Green, Kerr is confronted with some greater concerns regarding the Warriors’ changing rotation. Wiggins has had three of his worst games since returning from a finger injury, shooting 8-of-30 with 11 turnovers against the Blazers, Thunder, and Suns.

Kerr ultimately made a decision against the Suns late in the second quarter. Wiggins missed a shot and dribbled out of bounds shortly after entering to probably end the first half. Jonathan Kuminga had performed well in Wiggins’ absence. With barely over four minutes remaining in the half, Kerr withdrew Wiggins and replaced him with Kuminga to start the third quarter. Kuminga was on the field for 29 minutes. Wiggins had just 15 minutes of action this season. He did not finish the game.