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By Bryan Colbert Jr.
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Marcus Smart’s confrontation with Charles Bassey will cost the Houston Rockets guard three games and more than $125,000.
The NBA suspended Smart without pay on Thursday for throwing a punch that made contact with the Golden State Warriors center’s face during Wednesday’s game. Smart will miss Friday’s matchup against Utah, Sunday’s game at Washington and Monday’s visit to Miami.
The punishment leaves Houston without a veteran guard who has provided additional coverage behind Fred VanVleet. It also extends the consequences of an incident that already ended Smart’s night before the fourth quarter of the Rockets’ 115-108 victory.
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The confrontation occurred with 21 seconds remaining in the third quarter. Smart and Bassey had become tangled near the basket on an earlier possession and continued exchanging words as Houston continued play.
After Amen Thompson scored in transition to give the Rockets an 82-76 lead, Smart and Bassey stood face to face.
Warriors’ rookie Yaxel Lendeborg attempted to separate them before Smart threw a right-handed punch that apparently grazed Bassey’s nose.
Players and officials intervened, and Smart headed toward the locker room before the review was completed. Officials assessed a flagrant foul 2, which carries an automatic ejection.
Smart finished with six points, two rebounds and one assist in 16 minutes. Houston went on to end Golden State’s eight-game winning streak, but the altercation became a major part of the postgame discussion.
Bassey offered a pointed assessment of Smart’s behavior afterward.
“It didn’t surprise me. I knew he was going to do something,” Bassey said.
Rockets coach Ime Udoka said Smart told him Bassey had grabbed his elbow, which he had injured earlier in the season. Udoka described an exchange in which Smart took exception to the contact before the confrontation escalated.
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The suspension carries a financial penalty of $125,462, according to ESPN. Smart is eligible to return Wednesday against Indiana.
His absence could be especially significant during the Washington-Miami back-to-back. Houston has been resting VanVleet for one game in those sets as he returns from a torn ACL, with Smart starting when needed.
The Rockets managed to finish Wednesday’s win without Smart.
Now they must cover three full games, including a stretch in which his experience at point guard could have been particularly useful. A confrontation lasting only seconds has created a rotation problem that will follow Houston into next week.
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