Pacers’ Benedict Maturin suspended 1 game for ‘inappropriate contact’ with referee

Benedict Maturin made some waves last night when, after a foul on him, he hit Evan Mobley from behind on a layup attempt Indiana Pacers‘ 127-117 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, he lost his cool. Maturin assaulted official Nathalie Sago, yelling profanities at her, then threw a punch for good measure – warranting an instant ejection from the game.

Mathurin, in fact, received three technical fouls last night in the Pacers’ loss — one for “draws or pull-ups at the rim” and then two in quick succession for his lunging against the Sags. And after his actions, the league decided to suspend him for one game no charge for “inappropriate contact” with a referee, as posted on the official NBA communications account on X (formerly known as Twitter).

The Pacers winger was also found to have verbally abused an official, with social media lip readers finding that Mathurin called Sago a “s***h” during his fiery rant that saw him disqualified from further participation in the competition. The NBA takes mutual respect between players and referees seriously, and it was clear that Maturin crossed the line with his actions Tuesday night.

It’s hard to imagine what was going through Maturin’s mind when he lost his composure, as it was obvious he fouled Mobley, knocking him off balance while he was in the air with a backhand kick. The Pacers youngster may have gotten a piece of the basketball, but the body contact made it foul-worthy.

Now, the Pacers will be without one of their top scoring options in Maturin when they take on the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night. Jerras Walker, Ben Shepard and even TJ McConnell should get extended minutes in Maturin’s absence, especially amid Tyrese Halliburton continues to battle hamstring injury.

The Pacers are looking to get back to winning ways without Benedict Maturin

Benedikt Maturin has established himself as the starter for the Pacers due to Aaron Nesmith’s extended absence due to an ankle injury. Maturin has been making up for lost time, averaging 16.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game on a career-best 57.5 percent shooting, so he’ll be a big miss when Indiana visits the Pistons tomorrow night .

Maturin’s absence would require more contributions from Pascal Siakam, Andrew Nembhard and TJ McConnell in the shot creation/playmaking department. The Pistons are no longer a joke, as they are currently 21-19.