LeBron James, Isaiah Stewart handed suspensions for near Lakers-Pistons melee

LeBron James and Isaiah Stewart have both been handed out their suspensions for their roles in the near Lakers-Pistons melee on Sunday night.

Things nearly got incredibly ugly at Little Caesars Arena on Sunday night with the Los Angeles Lakers visiting the Detroit Pistons. A fracas started after LeBron James “inadvertently” hit Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart in the eye with an elbow/backhand.

That sent Stewart into a furious state in which he confronted James and, after being separated, then trying to dodge teammates, opposing players, and security to try and get to LeBron once again, an attempt that was unsuccessful.

Naturally, the big question was what the penalties would be for each player involved after both were ejected from Sunday night’s game. On Monday, we got that answer.

LeBron James suspended for one game, out vs. Knicks on Tuesday

The NBA announced on Monday that LeBron James would be suspended for one game, putting him out of the lineup on Tuesday night against the Knicks in Madison Square Garden. Stewart, for his part, was suspended for two games.

Shams Charania of The Athletic offered the NBA’s reasoning for the suspensions that were handed out.

Given the unpleasant memories of the Malice in the Palace that immediately came to mind for most NBA fans seeing the Lakers-Pistons nearly get into an all-out brawl resulting from the initial LeBron-Stewart incident, it’s not shocking that either player was suspended for this.

James will return to the Lakers on Wednesday as the team visits the Pacers. Stewart’s suspension will be up for him to play against the Clippers on the road on Friday night.