J.R. Smith Didn’t Apologize To Jae Crowder For Punching Him In The Face

The long national nightmare between Boston Celtics forward Jae Crowder and J.R. Smith of the Cleveland Cavaliers has, apparently, not been resolved. Heading into Tuesday night’s game between the Cavs and Celtics, Crowder told Boston media members he wanted Smith to apologize for dealing him a backhanded punch eight months ago during the playoffs. You can re-watch the errant swing seen ’round the world below:

The punch resulted in a Flagrant 2 foul and an automatic ejection for Smith, who was also suspended two games for the incident. Adding insult to injury, Crowder sprained his left ACL. Time may have healed the physical wounds, but they certainly haven’t healed the emotional ones. Though Crowder wanted an apology from Smith, the Cavs guard said he didn’t have any plans to do so leading up to the game.

“I mean, we’ll just play ball,” Smith told Cleveland.com on Monday.

It was probably unrealistic for Crowder to expect Smith to apologize. Otherwise, it would have happened already. Now, there’s an added level of tension for tonight’s game. And since this game is being played in Boston, don’t be surprised if Celtics fans let Smith hear it throughout the night.

(Via Cleveland.com)

×