Letrell Sprewell had potential to be a strong force in the NBA and showed flashes of brilliance with 4 All-Star appearances and All-NBA First Team honors.  Unfortunately, Sprewell also had one of the worst tempers the NBA had ever seen, resulting in multiple incidents of violence against teammates and coaches.

On this day, December 1st, in 1997, the Golden State Warriors guard Latrell Sprewell chocked coach P.J. Carlesimo during practice.  The incident reportedly occurred after Carlesimo asked Sprewell to improve his passing, to which Sprewell took offense.  Sprewell threatened to kill Carlesimo and choked him for 10-15 seconds.  He returned to try and attack Carlesimo again 20 minutes later, before being restrained by players and staff.

The incident resulted in the Warriors declaring Sprewell’s $24 million contract void and the NBA suspending him for one year. The suspension was then reduced to 68 games.