Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis said he was surprised by the NBA's decision to ban superstar team-mate LeBron James for the elbow that sparked wild scenes against the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.
James jostled with Pistons center Isaiah Stewart at a free throw, with the four-time MVP's left elbow connecting with the latter's face, leaving him bleeding from his right eye and incensed.
Stewart initially appeared calm but lost control, repeatedly charging at James for retribution on court, having to be restrained by team-mates and coaches in Detroit's 121-116 defeat.
The Pistons big man was handed a two-game suspension for his actions, but James was also slapped with a one-game ban for the first time in his illustrious 19-year NBA career after "recklessly hitting Stewart in the face and initiating an on-court altercation".
"I was surprised," Davis told reporters after the Lakers went down 106-100 to the New York Knicks without James on Tuesday.
"I didn't think he was gonna get suspended. I don't think anyone thought he was gonna be suspended to be honest.
"It was an accident. He accidentally hit him in the face. The report came out and said his hit to the face caused an incident. He can't control how a guy is going to react.
"Guys get hit in the face all the time, we're saying that caused the incident? I get hit in my face, I probably won't hit anyone. If I go off and do all that, does the other guy get suspended? It was strange but nothing we can do about it."
Davis had his own drama on Tuesday, making a mad dash to arrive at Madison Square Garden less than an hour before tip-off due to illness, playing 34 minutes for 20 points, six rebounds and three assists.
Lakers head coach Frank Vogel said Davis seemed a "little bit drained" although the NBA champion refused to blame that for the defeat which left the franchise 9-10.
"I don't use my illness as an excuse," Davis said. "I go out there and give it my all. I think we were tied in the fourth. we missed some shots."
After the Lakers fell short despite Russell Westbrook's triple-double, Davis added: "I just woke up not feeling well. Headache, flu symptoms, coughing, fever, body aching, everything. I was in my hotel waiting for my fever to break.
"It was a low-grade fever. I couldn't leave until my fever broke. My fever broke, got in the car and shot straight here. [I arrived] 46-48 minutes from the game clock. I got in and did as much as I can treatment wise, got dressed, went out to play."
Durant refuses to pin Suns defeat to Lakers on controversial timeout
Kevin Durant did not look to use a contentious timeout call as an excuse after the Phoenix Suns slipped to a 106-103 defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Suns were left furious after the referee elected to call a timeout following LeBron James' call, when the ball appeared to be loose, late in the fourth quarter of Tuesday's in-season tournament quarter-final.
With 15 seconds remaining, Davin Booker dispossessed Austin Reaves, with James swiftly requesting a timeout, which was granted.
Suns coach Frank Vogel fumed: "It's a loose ball, and you can't call a timeout on a loose ball.
"The whistle blows. I don't know why. Everything in the league is reviewable. I don't know why that can't be reviewable.
"We've got the trap, we've got the turnover, [and the] damn whistle blows. It's just frustrating."
Durant, though, did not share his coach's anger.
"That's not the ballgame," said Durant, who led the Suns with 31 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
"That's one play. It's a 48-minute game. I don't like to complain about calls.
"Sometimes the ref isn't going to get it right all the time. Sometimes it's on us to play through all that stuff and not worry about putting the game in the ref's hands."
Reaves added: "There was no call, and LeBron made a high-IQ play he's made a million times.
Vogel did, however, echo Durant's sentiment that the Suns did not do enough to win the tie and progress to Las Vegas.
"We didn't do enough early in the game," Vogel said. "The turnovers and on the glass, if we do a better job, we're not talking about a close game like that."
The Lakers will now face the New Orleans Pelicans for a place in the final of the inaugural in-season tournament, with the winner taking home the NBA Cup.
"You've got some of the most alpha male competitors in the world, and if you give us an opportunity to play for something meaningful or an incentive, then you get what you're getting," said James, who finished with 31 points and 11 assists.
"The in-season tournament is what it is, and we have an opportunity to play on a big stage, be on national television, represent our families, our communities, where we come from."
Bucks hint at offensive dominance in Knicks rout
The Milwaukee Bucks will not always hit the height of their potential, but Damian Lillard suggested Tuesday's big win over the New York Knicks can be a sign of what is to come.
The Bucks ran out 146-122 winners over the Knicks in their NBA in-season tournament quarter-final.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 35 points and 10 rebounds, while Lillard contributed 28 points, as the Bucks, who are second in the Eastern Conference, teed up a semi-final against the Indiana Pacers in Las Vegas.
Lillard warned it was too much to expect the Bucks to perform like that in every game, but he said the team have laid down a marker.
"I thought this was probably our best offensive game," said Lillard.
"That doesn't mean we're going to turn into a team that does that every night, but I do think we have that type of explosiveness.
"We can't depend on having these types of nights every time, but it's definitely a look at the kind of nights we can have offensively.
"It's been some bumps in that process where we don't play so great some nights but we're still able to win those games.
"I think now is just starting to get a little smoother, knowing where we should be on the floor, knowing how to give each other outlets, knowing how to help each other be who we are.
"It's not perfect, but I just like that we're showing improvement and it's carrying over and you can see it on the floor."
Lillard added that winning the in-season tournament would be a statement of intent.
"You come out of this thing on top, the last team standing, I think it's a pretty strong statement," he said. "It's something that everybody around the league has to respect."
"Tonight was a huge step. We wanted to get to Vegas," Bucks coach Adrian Griffin said.
"But when we get to Vegas, we've got to take care of business. We still got two games to win there."
Lakers, Bucks advance to In-Season Tournament semifinals
The Los Angeles Lakers secured a spot in the In-Season Tournament semifinals on Tuesday with a 106-103 win over the Phoenix Suns, as LeBron James scored 15 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter.
James had 15 of the Lakers’ first 19 points in the final quarter and got the assists on his teammates’ other two baskets as Los Angeles pulled ahead.
Anthony Davis tallied 27 points and 15 rebounds and Austin Reaves added 20 points, including a key 3-pointer with 15 seconds left to extend the Lakers’ lead to 105-101.
Los Angeles advances to face New Orleans on Thursday in Las Vegas.
Kevin Durant scored 31 points for the Suns but came up short on a potential tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Bucks handle Knicks to reach semifinals
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 35 points and 10 assists to help the Milwaukee Bucks book a spot in the semifinals of the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament with a 146-122 victory over the New York Knicks.
Damian Lillard added 28 points and Malik Beasley had 18 for the Bucks, who improved to 5-0 in tournament play with their ninth consecutive home win.
They set a season high in scoring, shooting 60.5 percent (23 of 38) from 3-point range and 60.4 percent overall to set up a matchup with Indiana in Las Vegas on Thursday.
Julius Randle scored a season-high 41 points on 14-of-19 shooting, and Jalen Brunson had 24 points, but the Knicks had a three-game win streak stopped.
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