Ex-NBA player apologizes after daughter’s violent sucker punch during game
The daughter of former Chicago Bulls guard Corey Benjamin violently attacked an opponent during a basketball game over the weekend, and Benjamin has issued an apology over the incident.
Benjamin’s 15-year-old daughter was playing in a tournament in Orange County, Calif., on Sunday when she sucker-punched an opponent toward the end of the game. The attack came after Benjamin’s daughter, who plays for the SoCal Blaze, attempted a three-pointer and missed. The victim, Lauryn Ham, came over to defend and fell to the ground after Benjamin’s daughter bumped into her. The punch came a few seconds later as the two were walking toward the other side of the court.
Ham’s mother shared the video on social media, and it has since gone viral. You can see it below:
Benjamin apologized while speaking with NBCLA’s Vikki Vargas on Thursday. He said he was saddened when he saw the video.
“That’s not how I raised my daughter,” Benjamin said. “To the young lady who was punched by my daughter during a youth basketball game, I sincerely apologize to you and I am praying for your complete healing both physically and emotionally,” he said. “To her family, I deeply apologize and regret that this happened to your daughter as she did not deserve this to happen to her.”
Benjamin also apologized for the actions of his daughter’s mother. One of the referees who was working the game told NBCLA that the girl who threw the punch was told by her mother, “You better go hit her.”
Kevin Hahn, an attorney representing the victim’s family, said Benjamin’s daughter was involved in another incident during a game in September in which she swung at two different players. He said she was banned by the organization that was hosting the September tournament, and it’s unclear if the Orange County event organizers were aware of the previous incident.
Benjamin was drafted by the Bulls with the 28th overall pick in 1998. He played four seasons in the NBA and several overseas professional. The 43-year-old was arrested on domestic violence charges in 2000 and 2016.
