The Chicago Bulls came down hard on forward Bobby Portis for injuring teammate Nikola Mirotic in a fight during practice on Tuesday.
The Bulls announced Wednesday that Portis has been suspended eight games by the team for his actions, which sent Mirotic to the hospital with a concussion and facial injuries.
Bobby Portis suspended eight games by the Bulls
— Vincent Goodwill (@vgoodwill) October 18, 2017
Bulls general manager John Paxson said both players had acted inappropriately leading up to the fight, but Portis was the only one who threw a punch.
Paxson said film showed both players were aggressive leading up to incident. Assistant Randy Brown stepped in at one point.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) October 18, 2017
Paxson: I wouldn’t call it a sucker punch at all. They were both aggressive leading up to it. But Bobby crossed a line.
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) October 18, 2017
Mirotic is expected to miss a few weeks with the injuries he sustained in the fight. He will still likely end up missing more time than Portis, who would be eligible to return on Nov. 7 against the Toronto Raptors.
