On Monday night, All-Star forward Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers injured his right hand when he repeatedly punched a member of the team’s equipment staff at a restaurant in Toronto.
According to ESPN’s Michael Eaves, Griffin, who has not played since Christmas, punched the man in the restaurant, then followed him outside and punched him again.
ESPN’s Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne reported Griffin may have fractured his hand as a result of the incident:
Eaves added that the victim had a swollen eye and blood on his face. Griffin and the staffer were sent back to Los Angeles. ESPN reported that Griffin, who has not played since Christmas when he partially tore a quadriceps muscle against the Los Angeles Lakers, will remain unable to play for “a matter of weeks, as opposed to days.”
The Clippers reeled off a nine-game winning streak after Griffin’s injury in December, going 11-3 in his absence.
On Tuesday morning, Clippers coach Doc Rivers said the team would release a statement before Tuesday’s game against the Indiana Pacers. The team has two games left on its road trip, against the Pacers and then the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.
In November 2014, Griffin was charged with one count of misdemeanor battery after an altercation the month before at a Las Vegas nightclub; the charges were later dropped.