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Thabo Sefolosha’s Court Date Set, Antic’s Charges Dropped

By John Buhler

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Thabo Sefolosha will have his day in court on October 5th over the infamous New York nightclub incident, according to ESPN’s Ian Begley.  Begley also says that charges against former Atlanta Hawk C Pero Antic have been dismissed by New York’s District Attorney’s Office.

Thabo Sefolosha now knows when he will have to appear in court for his altercation with the New York Police Department in the early hours of April 8th.  Sefolosha and former teammate Pero Antic went out to celebrate the Atlanta Hawks’s franchise record 58th win of the season shortly after arriving in New York following Atlanta’s defeat over Phoenix.

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Since New York has two NBA franchises, it is common for players from four different NBA teams to run into each other during the regular season in the Big Apple.  Atlanta was going to play the Brooklyn Nets, while theIndiana Pacers had a matchup with the New York Knicks.  At the same nightclub that Sefolosha and Antic were attending, Indiana Pacers SG Chris Copeland had been stabbed following an altercation with an NBA fan.

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Being that it was 4AM after a night of celebration, perhaps Thabo Sefolosha and Pero Antic were emotionally compromised to see one of their NBA brethren hurt from a malicious attack.  Sefolosha and Antic had their own altercation with NYPD outside the nightclub, resulting in a season-ending broken ankle injury to Sefolosha.  Thabo Sefolosha not being healthy down the stretch severely limited Atlanta’s defensive capabilities out on the wing.

Outside of a few TMZ videos, there is a lot of uncertainty about what actually happened in the early hours of April 8th in Manhattan.  Sefolosha isn’t pleased with the set court date, as that would interfere with Atlanta Hawks training camp.  Thabo isn’t sure if he will be ready for camp, but does think that he is progressing well from his broken ankle.

I’m not surprised to see the charges being dropped on Pero Antic as it just seemed like he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.  When Antic opted to return to Europe to play the 2015-16, I figured that the DA’s office didn’t find Antic the culprit of any wrongdoing.  Lingering legal issues would have made it difficult for the big man to play in another country in 2015-16.

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Thabo Sefolosha is the projected starter for the Atlanta Hawks at Small Forward now that DeMarre Carroll plays for the Toronto Raptors.  Atlanta has improved its depth on the wing again this offseason, but would prefer to have one of the league’s best perimeter defenders back on their team, full healthy and with no more ongoing legal issues.

Opening night for your Atlanta Hawks is only 48 days away.  Let’s hope that Thabo and the State of New York can have a speedy trial, so that we can get back to enjoying Atlanta Hawks basketball.

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