J.R. Smith might be in some hot water after being accused of choking a teenager in New York City
Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith is being accused of choking a teenager in New York City outside of a Chelsea pizza shop, according to the New York Daily News. The incident is said to have occurred on Nov. 13 outside of Artichoke Basille’s Pizza at around 4 a.m. local time.
Reportedly, the incident stemmed from the young fan, 19-year-old Justin Brown from Harlem, and his friends asking Smith for a photo while he was near them and he simply brushed them off. According to the report, there is cell phone evidence of Smith walking away from the group of youngsters, but it doesn’t specify whether or not the video also shows him choking anyone during the incident.
All of this stemmed from the fact that after Smith allegedly brushed the young teens off, they made some snide remarks about his trade from the New York Knicks to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Brown told Smith that this is why the Knicks gave him the boot, and from there that’s where he says Smith returned and choke him up against the building.
Now, Smith’s attorney, Alex Spiro, has commented on these allegations and he seems to be pretty adamant that no physical assault took place in this instance.
“The allegation is completely false,” Spiro said via the Daily News.
This would not be the first time that Smith has been in trouble off the court, but as far as this particular case goes, there’s still a lot more that has to come to light before jumping to any sort of conclusions.