Joe Smith turned himself in to police and was arrested Sunday after the Golden State Warriors forward was accused of smashing a beer bottle on the back of a male exotic dancer during a barroom brawl.
The dancer required 22 stitches to close the gash. Another dancer contends Smith and his group wanted the floor to themselves early Friday so the player could begin celebrating his 21st birthday.Chesapeake police spokeswoman Elizabeth Jones said Smith showed up at the police station with his lawyers at about noon. He was released on his own recognizance and is to appear in Chesapeake General District Court on July 31.
Jones said the malicious wounding charge is a Class II felony in which prison sentences generally run from five years to life.
Smith declined to comment when reached Saturday night by The Virginian-Pilot.
Len Elmore, Smith's former agent, said allegations that Smith attacked anyone surprised him. Elmore and Smith split in April.
"It doesn't sound like something Joe Smith would do," Elmore said from his home in Maryland.
A call to the Warriors was not immediately returned.
According to witnesses, Smith was part of a group that attacked a male dancer at Ridley's Restaurant and Lounge around 1 a.m. Friday.
Dancer David Turner claimed Smith smashed a beer bottle that cut Carlton Coney between the shoulder blades. Coney, 25, was treated at Chesapeake General Hospital.
Turner said the 6-foot-10 forward and a group of about 10 others became angry when the dancers wouldn't end their show by midnight, when Smith's birthday party was to begin.
Smith, who played two years at Maryland before entering the NBA draft last year, signed a three-year, $8.53 million contract with the Warriors.
Last season, he averaged 15.3 points and 8.7 rebounds while playing in all 82 games. He was a first-team selection to the NBA's all-rookie team and finished third in the league's rookie of the year voting.