J.R. Smith has had his share of distractions, both on and off court. And now he is once again in the limelight after allegedly choking a local New York teen who threw insensitive words at the Cavaliers swingman.
The incident as reported by The New York Daily News, allegedly happened on Nov. 13 outside the Artichoke Basille’s Pizza at about 4 a.m.
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According to reports, Smith was coming from the 1OAK Club at the time though the incident that happened at the time was obviously more important.
Smith was in town as the Cavs were all set to battle the Knicks at the time. The complainant, a certain Justin Brown, was with his pals who saw Smith and apparently asked the swingman for a possible photo opportunity.
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Smith declined and apparently Brown took exception and threw a pretty nasty verbal jab at the NBA player.
"That's why New York kicked you out, yo!" Brown said per reports.
Smith apparently got irked with it, leading to a shove and an alleged choke on the teenager. Smith’s lawyer would later on call the allegations “completely false,” per a report from Yahoo Sports.
For those who are unaware, Smith once played with the Knicks before he was sent packing in a three-way trade that also involved the Thunder last January. Smith, along with Iman Shumpert, landed with the Cavs.
The thing about Smith is that he was criticized for playing subpar during Sundays, something attributed to his Saturday night outs.
Going back to the alleged choking incident, any NBA player is not obliged to pose for photos. In this case, adding the fact that Smith was out at 4 a.m., it could end up costing him since it does bring up a forgettable past.
It remains to be seen what comes out of this though Smith has not been charged with anything. With regards to what Smith has to say, below is his tweet with regards to the incident and the reports therein:
Don't believe everything you read!
— JR Smith (@TheRealJRSmith) November 20, 2015
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