NBA Hits Key Laker With Suspension Over Role in Raptors Fight

The Los Angeles Lakers will play without  a key player in the game against the Miami Heat. According to recent sources, one Laker is facing a suspension.

The fight with the Toronto Raptors will cost the short-handed Lakers a valuable player for the game against Miami. The NBA suspended Talen Horton-Tucker Thursday morning. He will miss one game for leaving the bench during the confrontation between O.G. Anunony and Dennis Schroder.  DeAndre Bembry and Fred VanVleet saw similar suspension. Anunoby and Montrezl Harrell were fined $30,000 and $20,000 respectively.

League also suspended Lakers' Talen Horton-Tucker and fined OG Anunoby and Montrezl Harrell. https://t.co/TizejLmNLI

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 8, 2021

THT left the bench during the fracas, which is against the rules, so this is not surprising. https://t.co/8ymR8NMNLp

— Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) April 8, 2021

Valuable Laker faces suspension

THT is a key member of the Lakers rotation with LeBron James and Anthony Davis out. In the past ten games, the 20-year-old is averaging 10.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists. Horton-Tucker was the Lakers’ ultimate playmaker off the bench. He scored 17 points in the game against the Toronto Raptors. It was a team-best score.

The NBA forbids players who don’t play from leaving the bench during on-court upheavals. There’s a video of Horton-Tucker going toward half court. The German native came out unscathed for what the league called a common foul on Anunoby.

Thursday was supposed to be a good night for the Lakers team. Center Andre Drummond will start after missing three games due to his toe injury. Ben McLemore is also set to play.

According to sources, Kyle Kuzma may miss the game against Miami due to left calf tightness. According to Lakers head coach Frank Vogel, it was “significant” issue. LA will make a decision on young Kuzma. He was averaging 14.7 points and 7.2 rebounds with LeBron out of the lineup.

The Lakers had a rare shootaround Thursday morning in an effort to get McLemore.

“If he’s in there tonight, it will be a sort of throwing a whole lot of stuff at him and just asking him to compete,” Vogel said. “But we’re doing everything we can to try to get him up to speed as soon as possible.”

McLemore is an elite shooter. He was brilliant in 2020, shooting 40% and hit six threes in the final two games against LA in the playoffs.