Jason Smith: NBA Suspends Hornets Forward for Foul on Blake Griffin

It's hard to pin down what Jason Smith was thinking when he body-checked Blake Griffin to the floor on Thursday night in New Orleans.

Had the Saints' bounty program been adopted by the Hornets?

Perhaps it was the fact that Shaft himself announced the starting lineups that fateful night.

Whatever the reason for Smith's actions, he's being punished by the NBA.

Marc Stein of ESPN tweeted on Friday:

"

Just going out online/on air: Sources say NBA suspended Hornets forward Jason Smith for two games for Thursday night hit on Blake Griffin

— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) March 23, 2012"

Some believe Smith's hit on Griffin should have been punished more severely. ESPN's Stephen A. Smith said Smith deserved a 10-game suspension.

Jason Smith said after the game, via the Washington Post:

"

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. 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.

"

Right. Smith wasn't aware of his own strength. Uh huh.

Smith knows what he did was wrong on Thursday night. The only way to send Griffin flying like that is to go after him like a hockey player. Griffin isn't the type of guy who goes sailing into the crowd with a normal foul. Frankly, he's not the type of guy who goes sailing into the crowd with a normal, hard foul.

It certainly doesn't help that Smith's ego was probably boosted by the fact that the entire arena gave him a standing ovation for his hit on Griffin in the late fourth quarter. Turned into bloodthirsty creatures by Shaft, the Hornets crowd had a mind of its own on Thursday.

Regardless, Smith should be happy he didn't receive a harsher penalty for his body check on Griffin. What he did has no place in the game of basketball.

Follow me on Twitter. We can talk about how to successfully body-check Blake Griffin.