'He threw a water bottle and spit at an official': Lightning guard released after on-court tirade
CTV
An on-court tirade by London Lightning guard Chris Jones – where he allegedly spit an official- has resulted in a six-game suspension by NBL Canada and his release by the team.
An on-court tirade by London Lightning guard Chris Jones – where he allegedly spit an official- has resulted in a six-game suspension by NBL Canada and his release by the team.
“Unfortunately emotions got the best of Chris in that situation last night,” says Doug Plumb, the Lightning’s head coach.
According to the league, Jones received a pair of technical fouls in the third quarter in Sudbury, and the game report states he threw a water bottle on the court and spit at an official.
“He was banging on the stanchion which was the first technical foul, but didn’t calm down,” says Audley Stephenson, the vice-president of basketball operations for NBL Canada.
“He got a second technical foul and that followed by him getting further out of control with his demeanor, profanity, threw a water bottle and spit at an official. We are very proud of our play on the floor this year, and that is not becoming of what we want to emulate. It was a combination of a number of factors that led to the suspension for the rest of the regular season”.
The 30-year old guard from Memphis,Tenn. was averaging 15.9 points per game for the Lightning in 17 games this season after playing for the Windsor Express in 2019-2020.
The Lightning released Jones, who was scheduled to be at the NBL’s first all-star weekend in New York this weekend.
