Blazers' CJ McCollum suspended one game for leaving bench during altercation

McCollum will likely miss Portland's first game of the season

By Colin Ward-Henninger

Oct 14, 2017 at 2:20 pm ET • 1 min read

The NBA has suspended Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum for one game for leaving the bench during an altercation during a preseason game between the Blazers and Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.

Blazers rookie Caleb Swanigan became entangled with Suns center Alex Len, and the two started a bit of a shoving match. As you can see, Blazers forward Meyers Leonard runs from halfcourt to get in on the action, and, meanwhile, McCollum leaves his seat on the bench and walks onto the court.

McCollum's actions are in direct violation of the NBA rule that states: "During an altercation, all players not participating in the game must remain in the immediate vicinity of their bench. Violators will be suspended, without pay, for a minimum of one game and fined up to $35,000."

Here is the statement from the NBA:

NEW YORK, Oct. 14, 2017 - Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum has been suspended one game without pay for leaving the bench area during an altercation, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
The incident occurred with 9:33 remaining in the fourth quarter of Portland's 113-104 preseason win over the Phoenix Suns on Oct. 11 at Talking Stick Resort Arena.
McCollum will be suspended for the first game of the 2017-18 NBA regular season for which he is eligible and physically able to play.

McCollum took ownership of the incident and issued an apology.

"I've been in the league way too long to have a mental lapse like that," McCollum told ESPN.com in a text message. "I want to apologize to my teammates and the organization for putting our team in this situation. The Western Conference is already tough enough as it is. It won't happen again. Lesson learned. I take full responsibility for those eight expensive and costly steps."

You never want to see someone suspended for anything that happens during a meaningless preseason game, but the Blazers might appreciate the fact that McCollum was willing to stick up for his rookie teammate. Since McCollum is healthy, that means he will likely miss the Blazers' first game of the season next Wednesday against those very same Phoenix Suns.