NBA superstar Blake Griffin broke a bone in his shooting hand while throwing a punch over the weekend in Toronto, the Los Angeles Clippers confirmed Tuesday.
Multiple media outlets reported that the blow was thrown at a Clippers staff member.
Late Tuesday, Griffin addressed the situation via Twitter.
“A situation among friends escalated and I regret the way I handled myself towards someone I care about,” he wrote on his verified Twitter account. “I want to apologize to the Clippers organization, my teammates and the fans for creating a distraction. I am working with the team on a resolution and getting back in the game as soon as possible.”
The team said in a brief news release that the five-time All-Star broke the fourth metacarpal in his right hand on Saturday but didn’t say what the punch was aimed toward.
“This conduct has no place in our organization and this incident does not represent who we are as a team,” new team owner Steve Ballmer and head coach Doc Rivers said. “We are conducting a full investigation with assistance from the NBA. At the conclusion of the investigation, appropriate action will be taken.”
ESPN first reported that sources told the network Griffin punched a team staffer at a restaurant. USA Today, the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register also reported Griffin, the 2010-11 NBA Rookie of the Year, hit an employee.
CNN, which has reached out to the team and Griffin’s agent, has not independently confirmed whether Griffin hit a staffer or something else.
Griffin has not played since Christmas because of a quadriceps injury. He will miss four to six weeks because of the broken hand bone, which was surgically repaired Tuesday.
The 26-year-old forward was averaging a team-leading 23.2 points per game for the Clippers, who are in fourth place in the Western Conference. Griffin was the top 2009 draft choice after two years at the University of Oklahoma.
