The NBA handed out a one-game suspension to Jabari Smith Jr. and a two-game suspension to Kris Dunn, following their altercation on the court on Saturday. Smith missed the Houston Rockets’ clash against the Portland Trail Blazers as a result and before that contest, his head coach Ime Udoka was asked about the suspension.
“If a guy grabs you, you’re gonna react, but the throwing punches is the thing, so he’ll learn from that,” Udoka said. “If you’re not gonna land the punch you might as well not throw it.”
Smith and Dunn had gotten ejected for throwing punches in the second quarter of the game between the Rockets and the Utah Jazz. Neither of the two connected with their punches, though, and Udoka’s hilarious message to Smith is to not throw one if you’re not going to land it anyway,
Had Smith connected, he certainly would have been suspended for a lot longer than a game. That wouldn’t have been ideal for a Rockets team that is fighting for that 10th spot in the Western Conference.
Despite Smith, who is averaging 13.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game this season, being out, the Rockets managed to beat the Trail Blazers 110-92 for their ninth win in a row. They are now 36-35 on the season and are half a game behind the 36-34 Warriors, who are currently 10th.
Absolutely no one saw this Houston hot streak coming. The Rockets had lost 9 of their last 11 games in February and looked set for a disappointing end to the season. Instead, they have taken off and at this point, I would back them to finish ahead of the Warriors and get that final NBA Play-In Tournament spot.
This season has shown once again just how good of a coach Udoka is. The Rockets were tied for the worst record in the Western Conference in 2022-23 at 22-60 and then had what many described as a poor offseason, as they signed Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks to significant contracts. In his very first season at the helm, Udoka has made things work and it would be quite the feat if they make the Play-In Tournament.
Ime Udoka Believes The Smith-Dunn Incident Stemmed From Their Altercation Earlier In The Season
Getting back to Smith and Dunn, this was the second time that these two had squared off this season. They had done so during the first meeting between these sides on Jan. 20, and Udoka felt some bad blood was left over from then when talking about this incident.
“I think a little carryover from the last game,” Udoka said. “They got into it the last time we played and both got double technicals. I think Dunn hit him with a shot and then they got wrapped up and threw a few punches. Basically, nothing landed but as soon as you throw a punch you’re pretty much going to get ejected, so a little carryover from last time.”
(starts at 4:27 mark):
This was the earlier fight between Smith and Dunn.
There were no punches thrown here, so the two of them got away with just technical fouls. There are two more matchups coming up between the Rockets and the Jazz this season and you hope they won’t clash again.
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