J.R. Smith was interrogated by the NBA concerning Sunday’s shoelace caper, but got only a “warning’’ and no fine, according to an industry source.
“The league told him it can’t happen again,’’ the source said.
Yet Smith was still up to his old mischievous ways Tuesday against Detroit, when cameras caught him with his hand near Pistons center Greg Monroe’s sneaker as they waited for free throws in what appeared to be goofing around. Monroe stepped away.
“I wasn’t really too concerned about [getting fined],’’ Smith said after the game.
When asked if he understood the message from the league, Smith said, “Yes and no. I’m not really supposed to talk about it.’’
Smith can’t seem to stay out of his own way, and, before Tuesday night’s game, coach Mike Woodson said he planned to talk to him about Sunday’s incident when Smith bent down to untie the shoelace of Mavericks forward Shawn Marion, who has bad ankles.
“He shouldn’t be doing stuff like that,’’ Woodson said. “I’m going to talk to him more about it when I get in [the locker room]. His focus should be on just playing basketball. That’s what it’s about. Those are things you just don’t do. You think you’ve seen it all and something creeps in.’’
Smith told the NBA during his meeting Rockets center Dwight Howard pulled the shoelace stunt on him in Houston on Friday. Smith, however, got caught and Howard didn’t.
Smith wouldn’t confirm the Howard incident Tuesday. ‘“I’m not saying that,’’ he said.
The Mavericks’ television feed videotaped the incident Sunday as the two players lined up outside the lane awaiting free throws. Despite Smith’s many transgressions, the NBA didn’t want to draw more attention to the incident by fining him, perhaps feeling it made the league look sophomoric.
“I’ve never seen it done in an NBA game in all the years I’ve been around,’’ Woodson said, shaking his head.
The NBA has been all over Smith since he joined the Knicks, starting with a $25,000 fine for tweeting a photo of a partially naked woman in a G-string in his Milwaukee hotel room at 4 a.m. before a Knicks road game.
Woodson is close with Smith’s father, Earl Smith, who arrived at the Garden unusually early at 5 p.m. Tuesday. It was unclear whether he arrived to speak with Woodson or Knicks brass about his son’s latest faux pas.
“We don’t talk every day or anything like that,’’ Woodson said when asked about Smith’s father. “I try to keep tabs across the board. It’s not just J.R. and his family. I’m fond of everybody’s family. I try to keep my nose out of it. I don’t try to pry into family business. Sometimes you have to step in and do what you need to do.’’