“Attempted Assault on Doncic,” Schroder Suspended for 3 Games

The NBA handed a three-game suspension to Dennis Schroder, guard of the Sacramento Kings, for an incident that occurred after the loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on December 28 at the Crypto.com Arena. The decision came after Schroder tried to hit Luka Doncic, sparking tensions between the two players.

The NBA announced today that Sacramento Kings guard Dennis Schröder has been suspended for three games without pay for confronting and attempting to hit another player

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During the game, which the Kings lost 125-101, Schroder and Doncic exchanged some verbal taunts. During a timeout, Doncic mocked Schroder, referring to the $82 million four-year contract the German guard had turned down a few years ago: “You should’ve signed it”, he reportedly said.

Although it seemed that things had calmed down by the end of the match, the incident escalated in the tunnel leading to the locker rooms. Schroder, exiting the Kings’ locker room, spotted Doncic, and the two confronted each other again.

According to the NBA, Schroder attempted to strike Doncic, stating that he cannot be insulted on the court and then pretend everything is fine off it.

The incident occurred about 40 minutes after the Kings’ 125-101 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on December 28 at the Crypto.com Arena, when Schröder sought out the player in a hallway of the arena and initiated the confrontation.

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Lakers center Deandre Ayton intervened to hold back Schroder, while Doncic tried to walk away under the shocked gaze of onlookers. In the end, Schroder was escorted to the team bus, while Doncic and his father Sasa left the arena heading to their car.

The suspension will cause Schroder to miss the next matchup between the Kings and Lakers, scheduled for Monday in Sacramento, while relations between the two teams remain tense after the incident.