Kings Guard Schroder Suspended Three Games After Doncic Confrontation

Dennis Schröder brushed off suggestions he was merely "attempting" to strike another player after Sacramento's Dec. 28 loss to the Lakers, even as the NBA suspended him three games "for confronting and attempting to strike another player." League reports say Schröder "sought out the player in an arena hallway and initiated the confrontation" about 40 minutes after the game. The target was reportedly Luka Dončić, who had told Schröder during a timeout that he "should've signed that contract." Schröder had 11 points and seven assists in the game while Dončić finished with 34. Merlin senses a simmering feud, not a one-night flare. Deandre Ayton tried to pull Schröder away, but the hallway meeting and public suspension cast a longer shadow over the season. The absence reshuffles the Kings' bench and hands the rivalry extra heat when they next meet.