Blake Griffin Suffers Hand Injury Punching Equipment Staffer?
Blake Griffin is rumored to have suffered a hand injury, which now has him out of the L.A. Clippers lineup, by punching a member of the team's equipment staff.
According to ESPN, sources claim the Clippers' All-Star forward struck the staffer during an argument at a restaurant in Toronto while the team was on a road trip.
Reports are Griffin slugged the man, then followed him outside the establishment and hit him again. Griffin suffered what's been rumored as a fracture in his hand during the incident. Both he and the equipment staffer were immediately sent home following the skirmish.
Griffin is now expected to be sidelined for "a matter of weeks." Coach Doc Rivers indicated the team would make a statement on the issue prior to their Tuesday night game against the Indiana Pacers.
The Clippers also visit Atlanta on Wednesday night, before returning home to face the Lakers and Kobe Bryant at the Staples Center on Friday.
Griffin, who has also missed time this season with an arm injury, initially hoped to return to action during the current road trip. Overall, the team has gone 11-3 in his absence.
Back in November 2014, Griffin also ran into off-court troubles. The star player was charged with one count of misdemeanor battery after allegedly getting into an altercation with a man at a Las Vegas nightclub.
In that incident, Griffin was reported to have become enraged when a man began taking pictures of him with his cell phone. The flashes repeatedly went off in Griffin's face, prompting him to grab the man's phone.
Prosecutors dropped the case in March 2015, admitting they couldn't prove the case against the former Oklahoma star.
Now in his fifth season, the 26-year-old Griffin is averaging a team-leading 23.2 points in 30 games, to go along with 8.7 rebounds and five assists.
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