Renaldo Balkman received a lifetime ban and small fine from the Philippines Basketball Association for attempting to choke one of his teammates in a recent game.
Balkman, a former first-round pick of the New York Knicks who played six seasons in the NBA, confronted officials following a call he didn’t like during a game against the Alaska Aces last Friday. He then pushed two teammates and put his hands on the neck of Patron Blaze teammate Arwind Santos.
PBA commissioner Chito Salud made the announcement on Monday and said in his statement that he took the former New York Knicks guard’s history into consideration when making his decision. Salud cited a headbutting incident from a FIBA game between Puerto Rico and Venezuela, and a preseason incident with the bench of an opponent as reasons for his decision. The fine was for around $6,100.
Balkman sent the following statement via his Twitter account in response to the sanctions.
“I accept all responsibilities for my actions while playing an intense game, I have truly enjoyed my time here playing in the Philippines. I would like to apologize to [teammate Arwind Santos] a person who I truly respect and would never intentionally harm, my actions were irresponsible. I respect the Philippine Basketball Association and Petron Blaze Organization, this situation will never happen again…its a lesson learned. I would personally like to thank my fans and teammates who have shown me so much support during this time.”
To nobody’s surprise, Balkman’s agent, Sheryl Reyes, is unhappy with the lifetime ban. According to InterAKTV, she called it a “very harsh decision” that will affect her client’s job prospects.
You think? Maybe this is a wakeup call to Balkman to control himself on the court.
You can see video of Salud making the announcement and you can read his statement below:
