NEW YORK -- Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant has been suspended for two games without pay for by the NBA for elbowing Memphis' Mike Miller in the throat, Stu Jackson, the league's senior vice president of basketball operations, announced.
Bryant was given a flagrant foul I penalty for the incident, which occurred with 8:24 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Lakers' 100-99 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night at the Staples Center. The league decided to upgrade the call to a flagrant foul II, which is assessed for "unnecessary and excessive contact."
Bryant will serve his suspension Sunday, when the Lakers host the Utah Jazz, and Tuesday at Utah.
Bryant sustained an inch-long cut near his left eye early in the third quarter Wednesday night after taking an elbow from a driving Miller.
The Los Angeles Times quoted Bryant as shouting, "I'll be back" as he left the court for treatment. In the fourth quarter, when Miller drove down the lane, Bryant drilled Miller with an elbow.
"Any player that was going to come down the lane at that particular time, I was going to let them know that they just can't walk through here," Bryant told reporters after the game. "I think we as a team have to do a better job of establishing that, and me as the leader of the ballclub, I have to take initiative to do that.
"Hopefully everybody else will see that, especially this being our home court. People come here and think it's Hollywood and all this other stuff, and they'll come down and look pretty and shoot jump shots and dunk the ball and stand over the ball and all this other cute stuff. We've got to stop that."
Bryant will lose $144,971.59 in salary for each game he sits out.
Good, that was a flat out dirty play. I thought Kobe had changed after all the drama over the past couple of years, but then I read this, saw him elbow Miller, and read the article about him and Odom. He really hasn't learned much, and thats pretty sad.
By elbowing guys in the throat?! What an asshole."Hopefully everybody else will see that, especially this being our home court. People come here and think it's Hollywood and all this other stuff, and they'll come down and look pretty and shoot jump shots and dunk the ball and stand over the ball and all this other cute stuff. We've got to stop that."
I saw some replays of that yesterday and I'm surprised he's only being suspended for two games. Miller could have been seriously injured by a cheap shot like that.
The flagrant foul was rightfully upgraded, and Kobe was rightfully suspended. Who in the right mind would call a Flagrant Foul level ONE for an elbow to the throat? No doubt in my mind that was deliberate!
And speaking of the Lakers' next game, Utah's got a wide-open chance for payback after Kobe's crybaby antics towards the end of regulation the last time the two teams played against each other (those crybaby antics affected the outcome of that game, as well as the game's integrity, by the way)! Hopefully, payback will be served, now that Kobe's suspended!
Kobe has issues. I'm glad he is being held accountable.
I wonder why Shaq doesn't get more fines for his elbows. I am still amazed they gave Mark Madsen's chin a foul, when it stood its ground and Shaq gave him the good 'ol elbow.
I agree with the suspension. However, I kind of understand why he did it. You can't just get elbowed in the face and it let slide. Its hard to just let it slide. I'm sure he was trying to send a message to Memphis and other teams that they aren't going to just hit him or his teammates and get away with it.
If Tim would have gotten elbowed in the face and cut, we would all be defending Tim if he were to get back at whoever did it.
"Any player that was going to come down the lane at that particular time, I was going to let them know that they just can't walk through here," Bryant told reporters after the game.
Tim wouldn't elbow the guy who hurt him much less some random player. That was low even for Kobe.
After what happened in Detroit last year...yeah, I'm pretty sure David Stern made it crystal clear that anyone who deliberately committed flagrant fouls or tried to start fights with other players was going to be held accountable, regardless of what superstar status they had...if I remember correctly, the COYOTE, of all people, got ejected for looking like he was going to start a fight with Wally Szserbiac (or however you spell his last name).
Bull. Miller didn't hit Kobe on purpose, and even if he did, winning the game would have been better revenge. Instead, Kobe flagrant fouls in a game that the Lakers ended up losing by 1. Real smart. He also made up a lame excuse afterward instead of being a man and saying "yeah, I did it because he hit me and didn't even get whistled for it."
If Tim would have gotten elbowed in the face and cut, he would have gotten back at the other team by fouling out every single one of their bigs, just like he did against Seattle in the playoffs.
Uh, clearly Kobe was saying he'd do that to any player...not that any player would have done that to Mike Miller.
Try reading before criticizing.
And Captain Colorado rides again....
Prick.
But the Coyote is a mascot...how badass do you have to be to get thrown out of a game as a mascot....pretty bad ass I might say.
Anyone got a link to a clip of it?
He only said he would have done it to any player to try an play down the retalliation talk. And he just happened to wait until the 4th quarter to make a team statement, and it also just happened to be against the same guy that nailed him earlier....yeah.....
I'd like to see him try that agianst one of the Heat, or Pistons, or any other team with ornery big men.
I bet he also just happened to have the music playing so loud that he couldn't hear the girl yell no, and to raise awareness he was making a statement about the many dangers that resort staff have to work in.
I'll be bak! Kobe shouted as the metal shined from where his wound was.. I knew he was a T1000.
the lady biatch is back, expected the nba to let it pass since it rides komes left testicle.
That's bull , he didn't deserve to be suspended... now what is ESPN gonna do?
No no no...can't do that here.
As I understand it, it's an automatic suspension for each flagrant foul point assessed if you get, like, 6 of them. Kobe's got 2 Flagrant Foul points right now. Which now makes you wonder: Is the league suddenly going "Zero Tolerance" on Flagrant Fouls? I also know that a Level 2 Flagrant Foul is punishable by an automatic ejection. Kobe didn't get ejected because the refs called a Level 1 Flagrant against him. I guess the suspension is to make up for the lack of Kobe getting ejected after his flagrant was upgraded...
good, he should be suspended for that kinda crap
It makes you wonder though. I've seen a lot of should have beens Flagarant Type 2 hits against Manu and even Parker. None of those players got suspended. Heck, during the playoffs last season, there were several serious ones against Manu in the Denver series...
Oh and that was really, really stupid of Kobe. Liek someone said, the best way to have reacted to something like that was to have hit the game winning shot and given your team a win. And of course, talk trash after the game so you don't lose nearly $290,000...
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