Tag: J.R. Smith

Adam Silver’s longest NBA on-court suspensions, including Draymond Green

Adam Silver has only issued a handful of multi-game suspensions for on-court incidents.

Since taking over for David Stern, commissioner Adam Silver has not issued suspensions as often or for as long. But some still stand out.

Even though Silver does not have much reputation as a disciplinarian as the NBA’s commissioner, there are a few moments that have required him to be a bit more strict than usual.

While there are unfortunately several off-court incidents that have needed attention from Silver, it is rare that something that has happened during an actual game has led to a player receiving forced time away from the team.

But the recent suspension of Golden State’s Draymond Green for his violent chokehold of Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert led us to wonder how this compares to other on-court suspensions Silver has issued.

According to research from For The Win, per Spotrac, the NBA has now issued 15 multi-game suspensions for on-court incidents since Silver took over as league commissioner in 2014.

Based on what we found, here is what caused each of the suspensions:

NFL fans debated whether or not Josh Allen called a ‘Taylor Swift’ audible or a ‘J.R. Smith’ audible

Did Josh Allen say “Taylor Swift” or “J.R. Smith” with this TNF audible call?

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen might’ve revealed himself to be a Swiftie while calling an audible during his team’s Thursday Night Football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

As Allen tried to change the play at the line during the game’s first quarter, the quarterback shouted what sounded like “Taylor Swift! Taylor Swift!” to reveal the play change to his Bills teammates.

If that’s really what he was saying, that’s a heck of a way to pay homage to the season of Swift in the NFL as she and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce have been recently linked as dating.

Well, some people actually think Allen is saying “J.R. Smith” to homage the former NBA player.

The fact that Allen also used a “LeBron James” audible call in the game supports the “J.R. Smith” angle.

This has emerged to be a surprise NFL version of that “Laurel” and “Yanny” debate, as football fans really couldn’t tell what Allen was trying to say at the line of scrimmage with his audible call.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Mike White is convinced Allen was saying J.R. Smith’s name.

We hear “Taylor Swift” because that would make much more sense in the grand scheme of how the NFL is shaping up this season, but we accept folks hearing “J.R. Smith.” Maybe he said both. Who’s to say.

J.R. Smith finally explains why he threw hot chicken tortilla soup at an assistant coach

“He’s over there screaming because the [expletive] is hot.”

North Carolina A&T golfer and former NBA champion J.R. Smith was suspended in March 2018 for “throwing soup” at a Cavaliers assistant coach.

Smith, the subject of a docuseries on Amazon, recently appeared on The Old Man and The Three podcast with J.J. Redick. While the former NBA champ was promoting his docuseries, Redfined, he was asked about what led to the soup-throwing incident.

At the time, Smith said he didn’t recall what type of soup he threw at former Cavs assistant coach Damon Jones. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst knew what type of soup was involved but for some reason, he refused to share details as a silent protest.

Eventually, however, The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd revealed it was actually chicken tortilla soup. Smith has since argued that it was actually more of a “toss” than a throw.

Finally, however, we learned why Smith made this decision. This is what he told Redick at the 1-hour, 10-minute mark:

“Damon Jones is my guy. I love D-Jones. Everybody knows. But he has a knack of playing too much. For me, don’t get me wrong, I like to play a little joke here and there. Kikiki. But he is consistent with it. And for me, if I’m telling you: ‘I’m not in the mood right now.’ Like bro, I had some stuff going on at home. I wasn’t playing well. I was like dude, not right now.”

So we know that Smith was in a bad mood and we know that Jones was messing around with him.

But what happened next?

“Sure enough, I’m in the lunch room, getting my soup and he comes in and mind you the soup is hot. I’m like the first person in there. He’s like trying to make me spill it. I’m not going to lie. It took me a second because I actually thought about it. It wasn’t like a rageful throw. It was like: ‘Okay, you’re playing with me. I know you’re playing with me. I’m going to show you.’ I literally thought about it and I threw it on him. He’s over there screaming because the [expletive] is hot. I’m like, see, you want to stop playing now with me now right?”

Smith also confirmed that it was a tomato-based chicken tortilla soup.

The next day, according to Smith, he received an apology from Jones.

Jones is on record saying that it was the bowl and the soup that landed on him and because it was the first bowl out of the pot, it was hot as hell. He said it took a few months for them to speak again.

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J.R. Smith: Being LeBron James’ teammate will eat you alive

J.R. Smith pointed out how playing with LeBron James is an incredible stroke of good fortune and a huge burden at the same time.

LeBron James is one of the greatest players in NBA history, and more and more people believe he is the greatest basketball player of all time.

Because of his immense talents and accomplishments, not to mention the fact he has always aggressively promoted himself, he is a singular force.

He has always attracted massive expectations, and with massive expectations comes massive pressure, not just for him but also for his teammates.

Historically, James and his camp have looked to put blame on his teammates or the organization he plays for when expectations aren’t met, at least according to his critics.

It’s something former teammate J.R. Smith discussed on the latest episode of HBO’s “Game Theory with Bomani Jones.” The former sharpshooter said that playing with the four-time MVP is something plenty of men simply aren’t equipped to handle.

Via New York Post:

“… Honestly, it’s a gift and a curse playing with Bron. I love Bron to death and I love playing on his team because for me, I feel like I thrive more under the pressure.

“But a lot of guys don’t like it because it can go one of two ways.

“It’s either, what did you not do to help him win, and who else did not help him win. It’s like, bro, don’t get me wrong — yes, he had 40-15-9 or 8 — but he missed a free throw, too.

“Don’t just look at me because I missed an open shot. We all missing out here.

“… So, it’s always going to be that supporting cast of who’s not doing what… if you’re not built for that, you’re not made for that, it’s going to eat you alive.”

James is arguably the most powerful athlete ever, especially when it comes to influence, and there is a perception that he looks to control the narrative of his career to a fault. His infamous tendency to be passive-aggressive also contributes to that.

Many people simply don’t have the basic personality traits to be able to handle constant pressure, let alone thrive under pressure. It is an uncommon trait indeed, and it is a trait that tends to separate good and great players from the merely mediocre ones.

It is indeed part of the reason having LeBron James on one’s team is definitely a blessing and a curse at the same time, as Smith pointed out.

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WATCH: Former Cavalier J.R. Smith goes shirtless in pregame guitar smash

The Browns got the festivities started with a classic J.R. Smith showing

The Cleveland Browns have had a pregame tradition of having legends to the city do a hype routine to get the crowd ready. Current Cleveland Cavaliers like Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland have made sightings, but this afternoon, NBA champion J.R. Smith got his shot to smash the pregame guitar. And he did so in classic J.R. Smith fashion.

Known for going shirtless at the Cavaliers’ championship parade, it has become part of Smith’s identity. Even in the cold, Smith ripped his jersey off to smash the guitar as only Smith could. As the Browns look to take down the Baltimore Ravens, they at least had a legend lead them off.

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J.R. Smith showed up to the PGA Tour Pro-Am with a slick custom putter and golf fans loved it

J.R. has some GREAT taste!

After his recent retirement from the NBA, it seems like J.R. Smith’s been having the time of his life lately.

One of Smith’s more recent fun forays has been trying his hand at golf. As a current member of North Carolina A&T’s golf team (where he’s working toward a degree in liberal studies), Smith has slowly been polishing up his skills on the green.

In a test of where Smith stands, he was paired with pro golfer Tony Finau during Wednesday’s BMW Championship Pro-AM. Ever a man with impeccable taste and flair, Smith showed up to the tournament — while wearing a salmon sweater, mind you — with one of the slicker, custom putters you might ever see:

Oh man, look at that purple. That is one cool putter. If you’re going to have it custom-made by a designer with Bettinardi in Chicago like Smith did, it better look positively great. And it does. Mission accomplished.

TaylorMade Golf x Kith limited edition collection

The collection offers a total of 92 products.

Popular streetwear brand Kith has partnered with TaylorMade Golf to introduce a limited edition 92-piece collection. This collection features apparel, accessories, and custom golf equipment.

TaylorMade Golf and Kith have designed a limited edition Stealth Plus Carbonwood driver, P·790 irons, MG3 wedge, Spider GT and TP Soto putters. All of the limited edition clubs feature gold accents.

On the apparel front, Kith has brought their hype-design streetwear for both on and off course styles. They have taken their modern designs and added a contemporary golf twist. J.R. Smith, former professional basketball player and current collegiate golfer, is the face of the collection.

TaylorMade email subscribers can shop the collection early via the Kith Mobile App. This collection will go live July 1.

Kith x TaylorMade limited edition clubs
Kith x TaylorMade limited edition clubs. (TaylorMade)
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LeBron James has been working out with former Laker J.R. Smith

LeBron James is getting ready for next season with one of his former championship teammates.

Love him or hate him, one thing is for sure about LeBron James: He has an iron-clad commitment to his craft and his body.

He reportedly spends more than $1 million a year to keep his body right, so it’s no wonder he was able to post some amazing individual numbers this season (30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game) at age 37.

The Los Angeles Lakers superstar has also been working on his game.

Days ago, he was in a New York City gym getting up shots with Kevin Love, his former teammate on the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2015 to 2018.

More recently, James was spotted working out with J.R. Smith, another former teammate.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CfP4F3opvju/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=06134176-36db-4057-8af5-007b8350bdd1

Smith played with James on the Cavs from midway through the 2014-15 season through the 2017-18 campaign. The 6-foot-6 wing was a key part of the historic 2016 Cavs team that won the NBA title.

Smith then joined the Lakers for the 2020 NBA playoffs, allowing the two to win a second world championship together.

Because it’s James, and because of the disproportionate power he supposedly has over the Lakers organization, this may inevitably make fans wonder whether he is angling to bring Smith back to the Purple and Gold next season.

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J.R. Smith, former NBA player who became a college golfer, gets groundbreaking Lululemon NIL deal

The former NBA star is Smith is Lululemon’s first male golf ambassador.

J.R. Smith went to the NBA immediately following his high school graduation in 2004. The two-time NBA champion was a first-round draft pick of the New Orleans Hornets, but also played for the Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers during his 16-year career.

After a long and successful career in the NBA, Smith walked on to the North Carolina A&T golf team in 2021. He is currently in his second semester of his freshman year as a full-time student.

According to ESPN’s Nick DePaula, J.R. Smith signed a name, image and likeness deal with Lululemon, a popular activewear brand. Smith is Lululemon’s first male golf ambassador. Smith is not able to wear Lululemon at NCAA sanctioned events, but he can wear Lululemon in the company’s branded advertisements.

Smith has been a hot topic in college sports not only because of his professional basketball career but his willingness to go back to college and earn his degree. Smith signed with Excel Sports Management for NIL representation in January and his agent, Lance Young told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski at the time that many golf apparel and equipment manufacturers were interested in sponsoring Smith.

[afflinkbutton text=”Evolution Short Sleeve Polo – $88 at Lululemon” link=”https://shop.lululemon.com/p/men-tops/Evolution-Polo/_/prod6020330?color=52877″]

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Ex-NBA player, current college golfer J.R. Smith signs with agent for NIL deals

“J.R.’s main objective is just to bring more attention to the game of golf.”

Former NBA player J.R. Smith has signed with Excel Sports to handle his representation in name, image and likeness deals, agent Lance Young told USA TODAY Sports.

ESPN.com was first with the news of Smith’s signing with an agent.

Smith spent 16 years in the NBA and announced last year that he was enrolling as an undergraduate at North Carolina A&T, a Historically Black College and University located in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Smith also said he going to pursue golf while attending school and has competed in several tournaments for N.C. A&T.

Young said that Smith wasn’t really thinking about NIL until it was brought to his attention and said they are talking to sports and Fortune 500 companies.

“J.R. is an NIL guy but with the influencer tag on it as well. With J.R. having seven or eight million followers on his platforms, it’s really an influencer deal,” Young said.

J.R. Smith of the North Carolina A&T Aggies lines up a putt on the 8th green to clear during the Phoenix Invitational at Alamance Country Club on October 11, 2021 in Burlington, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)

Smith, now 36, made almost $90 million during his career. He was originally drafted in the first round of the 2004 NBA Draft by the New Orleans Hornets and also played for the Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Los Angeles Lakers, winning two titles with the Cavs and Lakers.

He was also named Man of the Year Award with the New York Knicks in 2013 averaging a career 18 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.

While Smith’s deal could be lucrative for him, the opportunity for others to cash in was appealing as well.

“J.R.’s main objective is just to bring more attention to the game of golf and to have as many minorities playing and have as much exposure to his team and all the HBCUs that maybe don’t play in the top tournaments and play at good golf courses,” Young said.

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