The Charlotte Hornets will face the Raptors on Monday night in Toronto, but will be without a key player as Miles Bridges was not allowed entry into Canada due to his domestic violence charge from last summer.
Bridges sat out last year without a contract and then served a 10-game suspension at the start of this season after he entered a plea of no contest to felony domestic violence charges following an incident involving the mother of his child in Los Angeles in 2022. The Hornets brought Bridges back on the qualifying offer this year and have had him back in the lineup, but because of the felony charge on his record, he was denied access by the Canadian government.
Bridges tweeted on Sunday “Got denied in the 6” before deleting that post, and it was later confirmed he had not been allowed into the country due to his felony record, but the team was trying to get that decision reversed.
From Canada’s visa website:
“If you try to enter Canada with a felony conviction on your criminal record, you could be deemed criminally inadmissible to Canada, and denied entry at the Canadian border.” https://t.co/XUSY7n9mzf pic.twitter.com/k244bFdizl
— Nick Carboni (@NickCarboniWCNC) December 18, 2023
However, Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Monday evening it was “unlikely” to be reversed by the time the game started, taking him out of the available lineup against Toronto.
ESPN Sources: Canada’s decision to deny Hornets F Miles Bridges entry into country is unlikely to be reversed in time for him to arrive for tonight’s game vs. Raptors. Bridges – who plead no contest to felony charge of injuring a child’s parent – was denied border access Sunday. pic.twitter.com/Z4Ajw0FHhJ
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 18, 2023
The Hornets have lost four in a row coming into Monday’s game against the Raptors.