Reported details have emerged with the painting of a bloody scene outside a Miami strip club that Houston Rockets security guard Sterling Brown hospitalized early Monday.
The Houston Rockets released a statement Monday that Brown was “the victim of an attack” and “suffered facial wounds but will make a full recovery.” Few other details of the incident were reported at the time.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania and Kelly Iko published a story on Thursday citing sources close to Brown who were concerned about his life after a nighttime assault outside a club called the Booby Trap.
Report: Brown left beaten, bloodied by multiple assailants at strip club
According to the report, Brown and some of his Rockets teammates took a trip to the Booby Trap around midnight on Monday. The Rockets were staying at a Coral Gables hotel prior to Monday’s game against the Miami Heat after playing the Orlando Magic on Sunday afternoon.
The Rockets chose to stay in Coral Gables to create some distance between the team and Miami nightlife, the report said.
Upon leaving the club, Brown accidentally attempted to get into the wrong van, according to the report, leading to an altercation with the occupants that escalated to violence. A source told The Athletic that the van’s occupants all beat Brown, with an attacker hitting him on the back of the head with a bottle, “leaving blood all over.”
Report: Brown’s teammate intervened to stop the attack
Brown’s teammate Kevin Porter Jr. intervened to protect Brown and was “shaken up” in the process, the report said. Several of Brown’s teammates had reportedly left the establishment before the attack.
Porter was good enough to play against the Heat on Monday. Brown, who was sidelined with a knee injury, did not. The Rockets cited Brown’s knee injury as the reason for his absence Monday.
According to a Miami-Dade police report obtained by The Athletic, police found Brown “with multiple cuts throughout his body” after responding to a call about a fight.
Brown “insisted he did not want to provide his information,” the police report said. According to the report, he was admitted to Jackson Memorial Hospital after 7 a.m.
‘His face is jacked up’
When he arrived at the emergency room, “blood was all over, dripping all over the floor,” the report said. Doctors reportedly worried that Brown could have gotten blood clotting because of his head injury.
If he hadn’t been so physically strong and tough, he might not have made it out of the situation [Sunday] night, ”a source told The Athletic. “He could have died.”
After getting stitches and testing, Brown was fired Monday afternoon.
“His face has been jacked up,” a source told The Athletic
A league spokesperson told The Athletic it is investigating the incident and “is hopeful that Sterling will make a full recovery.”
Stephen Silas tackles assault, provides update on Brown
Rockets coach Stephen Silas responded to questions about the attack ahead of Houston’s game against the Utah Jazz Wednesday. The rookie head coach that that was are dealing with a tumultuous Rockets season prior to the attack on Brown told reporters he is trying to “focus on verifiables.”
“It’s not an easy situation,” said Silas. That’s the job. That’s what I’m here for. My job is to guide us through these choppy waters. My job is to hopefully help the players navigate everything that is going on around them. …
“Clearly there is a lot that is uncontrollable. It’s not that I can’t worry about those things. But I can do what I can. Staying strong, staying positive, staying all those things in these times is what it takes. That’s what I’m doing. ”
Silas also told reporters that Porter has been placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols and will not be available to play the next three games against the Jazz, Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets. The reported strip club outing violates the NBA’s COVID-19 protocols that prohibit players from going to bars and clubs.
Silas also affirmed that “Sterling is here in Houston and is recovering. “
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