After pleading guilty to a domestic battery incident with his wife that occurred back in May, Sacramento Kings point guard Darren Collison will be suspended for eight regular-season games, per ESPN’s Marc Stein:
The NBA will suspend Kings guard Darren Collison for the first eight games of the NBA season, according to league sources
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) October 2, 2016
Sources say Collison can play in preseason games and participate in all practices but must miss the first eight games of the regular season.
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) October 2, 2016
This is a much lighter punishment than was expected based on precedent. The last time that an NBA player was arrested for domestic violence (Jeffrey Taylor) he was suspended for 24 games. Collison gets just a third of that sentence.
Collison, 29, averaged 14 points and 4.3 assists per game last season while serving as Rajon Rondo’s backup. This season, with Rondo in Chicago, Collison is the Kings’ presumed starter at the point guard position. During his absence, the starter will likely be former Nuggets’ star Ty Lawson.
