Add this to the list of J.R. Smith suspensions. The New York Knicks guard was suspended one game by the league for “striking” the groin of Washington Wizards reserve forward Glen Rice Jr. on Tuesday night.
He will miss Wednesday night’s game against Detroit. Rice Jr. was actually called for the foul on the play, but the Wizards ended up winning the game 98-83.
The league may have deemed Smith’s transgression an intentional one based on his notorious track record
Smith was suspended for the first five games of the 2013-2014 season for violating the league’s anti-drug policy and was fined $50,000 in January for untying then-Mavs forward Shawn Marion’s shoelaces after doing the same thing earlier to Dirk Nowitzki.
Smith is averaging 7.5 points, four assists and 1.8 rebounds in 24.5 minutes per game so far this season, and was involved in a trade rumor earlier in the week that would have sent him to the Indiana Pacers for former New York backup Chris Copeland.