Dahntay Jones Suspended: Latest Details, Comments and Reaction

The NBA announced Sunday a one-game suspension for Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dahntay Jones for striking Toronto Raptors center Bismack Biyombo in the groin during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Jones, 35, hit Biyombo in the groin with his right hand with 17.6 seconds remaining in the Raptors' 99-84 win Saturday. He will serve his suspension during Monday night's Game 4.

The shot came after a breakout performance from Biyombo, who scored seven points, grabbed 26 rebounds and blocked four shots in 39 minutes. Biyombo has also been a consistent thorn in LeBron James' side during the series, mostly via hard fouls near the rim.

"I think our refs do a great job, and I think our league does a great job of protecting our players, and that's all that matters," James told reporters Sunday, per Doug Smith of the Star. "I would hope it never gets to a point where it gets outside of basketball and competition, but you never know. I protect myself, my teammates protect me, the ref protects all our players, and the league protects all the players as well."

Raptors coach Dwane Casey did not think the "protecting" has gone both ways. Casey was highly critical of the referees after Game 3, pointing to multiple instances where he felt Biyombo was fouled.

"[Biyombo] is not getting the calls," Casey said, per Brian Windhorst and Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com. "We shoot zero free throws in the fourth quarter. Zero. He's getting hit. There's one play where they almost have a brawl. He gets killed on that play.

"I don't know if he's getting hit because of how physical and tough he is, but he's getting cracked. To his credit, I thought he was going to lose his head when he got the technical foul, but he kept playing."

Casey was fined $25,000 for his criticism, per Howard Beck of Bleacher Report.

Jones is a seldom-used reserve who was only in the game because it had gotten out of hand. He's played a total of 20 playoff minutes, all coming in garbage time. The suspension will almost certainly have no bearing on Game 4, barring some sort of injury to Cleveland's wing players.

Jones has a bit of a reputation as an irritant. He's had two well-documented incidents with Kobe Bryant and was fined $10,000 for bumping Draymond Green during a post-game interview last season. Whether intentional or not, Jones' history may have played a part in the NBA's decision making.

The league will also be watching Game 4 closely, just in case there are any attempts at retaliation.

Follow Tyler Conway (@jtylerconway) on Twitter.