Following his hockey check of Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin, New Orleans Hornets forward Jason Smith will be suspended for two games. That hockey check earned Smith a flagrant 2 foul and an ejection from Thursday's game, and on the rare occasion that a player is assessed a penalty that harsh, the league has to look at what transpired and consider a suspension. Marc Stein passed along the news.
Jason Smith Suspended Two Games For Flagrant Foul On Blake Griffin
Just going out online/on air: Sources say NBA suspended Hornets forward Jason Smith for two games for Thursday night hit on Blake Griffin
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) March 23, 2012
The schedule works out perfectly for the purposes of avoiding further altercations. One of the two games Smith’s suspension runs through is a game against the Clippers. Smith apologized to Griffin after executing the nasty hip check, but that probably wouldn’t have been the end of the bad blood if Smith had been able to play in the rematch.
For more on the two teams, head to Clippers blog Clips Nation, SB Nation Los Angeles and Hornets blog At The Hive.
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