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NBA Playoffs 2015: Should J.R. Smith be suspended?

By Josh Hill

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The Cleveland Cavaliers are on to the next round of the NBA Playoffs, but a hot topic of debate will be whether or not J.R. Smith should be suspended. 

The Cleveland Cavaliers faced perhaps their most physical test of the season in Game 4 against the Boston Celtics, but they aren’t going to be moving forward with all of their pieces fully intact. Kevin Love has a dislocated shoulder, Kendrick Perkins is all sorts of messed up and J.R. Smith is likely going to get a suspension.

Love’s shoulder is a hot topic at the moment, but the potential for a J.R. Smith suspension is even hotter as he is critical to the Cavaliers success in the postseason. When he arrived from the New York Knicks this season, he was trying to shake the stigma of being a dirty player.

For all intents and purpose, he evolved as a player and shed that label as a clown on the court. But that all came rushing back when Smith clobbered Jae Crowder in the face during Game 4 in what he claims was an unintentional foul but resulted in his ejection.

Next: Cavaliers vs. Celtics Game 4 Highlights

The question now is, will J.R. Smith be suspended for his actions or will the NBA let this one slide?

In all likelihood, the NBA is going to suspend Smith for his shot to Crowder’s money maker and it’s going to be a suspension that might bleed into two games. Smith has moved away from being a ‘dirty’ player, but the NBA needs to send a message that things will not get as physical as they did in Game 4 moving forward.

Boston and Cleveland beat each other up bad in Game 4, from the Love shoulder injury to the Kendrick Perkins scuffle and the J.R. Smith ejection. Cleveland is battered and bruised moving forward in the postseason, and losing J.R. Smith for one or even two games against the Chicago Bulls in round two could mean the difference between being up in the series heading onto the road or being down or tied.

Neither of the latter two scenarios are ideal for the Cavaliers, but it’s going to be interesting to see what the NBA decides and how it effects the Cavaliers championship game plan moving forward.

Next: Updated NBA Playoffs Bracket

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