If you're going to get called for a flagrant foul and be ejected from a game, you best get your money's worth. That's exactly what Hornets big man Jason Smith did on Thursday night against Clippers star Blake Griffin.
Late in the fourth quarter, Griffin was out in front of a fast break when Smith cut off his angle while trying to catch up with him. Then, Smith essentially hip-checked Griffin to keep him from taking off. The foul left Griffin sprawled out on the floor for a few minutes.
The hard foul resulted in a flagrant 2 for Smith, and he was also ejected. Upon leaving the court, Smith was cheered by the hometown New Orleans fans after executing a play that might have earned him a nice chunk of change if Gregg Williams coached the Hornets.
After the game, though, Smith was regretful about committing the foul.
"I think it looked a lot worse than what it was, but that's still not a play that you ever want to do to another player like that," Smith said. "I apologize to Blake Griffin. I didn't want to hurt him at all. I just wanted to try and cut off his lane to the basket."
See the foul in question below.
