Nba Suspends Rockets G Marcus Smart 3 Games For Throwing Punch At Warriors' Charles Bassey

The NBA doesn't look kindly on players who throw punches during a game. Houston Rockets guard Marcus Smart was suspended three games without pay by the NBA on Thursday after throwing a punch at Golden State Warriors center Charles Bassey during Wednesday's game.

In its statement, the league specifically says the punch made contact with Bassey's face. The suspension is set to cover Houston's games against the Utah Jazz on Friday, the Washington Wizards on Sunday and the Miami Heat on Monday.

The incident occurred in the third quarter of Houston's 115-108 win. With less than a minute to go in the quarter, Smart and Bassey appeared to exchange words on the court. Smart then threw a punch at Bassey right in front of an official.

Smart was assessed with a flagrant 2 foul and ejected from the contest. He had already exited the court by the time the officials announced the punishment.

Smart finished the game with 6 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist.

Under NBA rules, Smart faced — at the minimum — a fine for the flagrant foul and a suspension for throwing a punch, which comes with a minimum one-game ban in the NBA rulebook:

Any player who throws a punch, whether it connects or not, has committed an unsportsmanlike act. He will be ejected following confirmation during review by instant replay and suspended for a minimum of one game.

The incident occurred after Smart and Bassey got tangled up during a rebound attempt. After the contest, Rockets coach Ime Udoka said Smart confronted Bassey after the Warriors center wrapped up Smart's elbow on the play. Bassey reportedly told Smart "what are you gonna do," leading to the attempted punch.

Bassey, meanwhile, had something to say about what he called "fake toughness" from Smart:

"He's been playing dirty the whole game," Bassey said, according to Yahoo Sports' Kelly Iko. "I don't think he was trying to play, I think he was trying to get kicked out of the game."

Smart's absence didn't hurt the Rockets too badly in the end, as the team still managed to pull off a win. It probably helped that Warriors star Stephen Curry sustained an oblique tear early in the contest, missing much of the game.

Curry is now expected to miss at least two weeks with the oblique tear.