Hornets' Miles Bridges turned away at Canadian border ahead of game against Raptors: reports
Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges ran into problems when he tried to enter Canada for a recent game against the Toronto Raptors, according to multiple reports.
Shortly before Monday's game started, the Hornets said Bridges was "not with the team."
He did not play in Charlotte's 114-99 loss to the Raptors.
Bridges' past legal issues appeared to have created complications, and he ended up being turned away at the border, ESPN reported. Bridges previously pleaded no contest to a felony charge of injuring a child's parent. He made the plea deal to avoid jail time.
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In April, the NBA announced Bridges would serve a 30-game suspension. The league credited Bridges with 20 games served after he sat out for the entire 2022-23 season. He then missed the first 10 games of this season.
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Hornets coach Steve Clifford would not comment on the reason for Bridges’ absence when he spoke to reporters before Monday’s game.
"The only thing I'm going to say is neither Miles nor (rookie center Nathan Mensah from Ghana) will be here with us tonight," Clifford said. "That's all I'm going to say."
Bridges is serving three years probation from the June 2022 domestic violence case involving the mother of his two children. The woman accused Bridges of assaulting her in front of the children.
He must adhere to a 10-year criminal protection order for the woman, submit to weekly narcotics and marijuana testing and pay restitution, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office.
Canada Border Services Agency spokesperson Rebecca Purdy said the agency does not provide details on specific cases, but anybody seeking entry into the country must "demonstrate they meet the requirements to enter."
"Admissibility is decided case by case and based on the information made available at the time of entry," Purdy said told the AP. "Several factors are used in determining if an individual is admissible to Canada, including involvement in criminal activity, human rights violations, organized crime, security, health or financial reasons."
Bridges surrendered to authorities in October after an arrest warrant was issued for an alleged protection order violation.
The warrant was initially issued Jan. 2 but had not been served until October, just before the NBA season. According to court documents, Bridges "unlawfully" and "knowingly" violated the protection order and "continually contacted the victim."
That case remains pending.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.