The NBA handed down punishment Wednesday morning from an altercation that took place between the San Antonio Spurs and Indiana Pacers Monday night. The incident occurred during the fourth quarter of that game when the Pacers' JaKarr Sampson shoved Spurs guard Patty Mills after the two were getting physical on the other end of the floor when trying to fight for rebounding position.
After shoving Mills, Sampson then escalated the incident by headbutting Mills, which caused Spurs forward Rudy Gay to step in and shove Sampson. As a result, the league has suspended Sampson for one game without pay, while Mills was assessed a $25,000 fine with Gay getting docked $20,000 for his involvement in the situation.
Here is the altercation that resulted in the suspensions and fines:
JaKarr Sampson picked a fight with Patty Mills, a swell guy 7 inches shorter than him
— Tom Petrini (@RealTomPetrini) April 20, 2021
Rudy Gay was ready to deliver swift justicepic.twitter.com/OQtrUaZ7B8
Sampson was given a personal foul, technical foul and an ejection at the time of the incident for headbutting Mills. The Spurs went on to win the game 109-94. Sampson will serve his one-game suspension Wednesday night when the Pacers take on the Thunder. Sampson missing a game isn't ideal for Indiana's frontcourt as the Pacers will enter the game against OKC without any true frontcourt players, which should make for an interesting contest. Both Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner are out with injuries, while Doug McDermott and Goga Bitadze are questionable against the Thunder.
