Renaldo Balkman and the Choking Incident

Image credit: Spin.ph

The Petron Blaze Boosters entered into their game yesterday, March 8, versus the Alaska Aces with a 5-1 standing. Both teams are tied for first place and the winner of this match would gain solo lead in the ongoing 2013 PBA Commissioner's Cup. Hence, fans came in droves at the Smart Araneta Coliseum expecting a tough match between the top two teams of the conference. And that is certainly what the fans got... and then some.

Prior to this game, Renaldo Balkman has shown great performance while suiting up for the Petron Blaze Boosters managing to get five straight wins and shooting to the top of the team standings. But when a series of calls did not turn his way and with his team on the verge of losing the competition for solo leadership, Balkman went from solid baller to a complete madman. To give you an idea as to how quickly the situation went from bad to worse, he ended up shoving and choking his own teammate. Yes, his own teammate. And the teammate in question is no less than team captain Arwind Santos, who is also one of Petron's franchise players.

Watch this clip from InterAKTV to watch the series of actions leading up to the choking incident involving his teammate Arwind Santos:

Right now, fans are enraged at social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Many have even campaigned for getting rid of Balkman, citing the player's unacceptable attitude during yesterday's game as tipping point. As a former NBA player, fans expected more out of Balkman given that he has had his stint at the world's most prestigious basketball league. But I guess you can't teach class.

Since that incident, however, Balkman took to his Twitter account to express his apologies to his teammates, the fans, and most especially to Arwind Santos. Balkman was also summoned to the Commissioner's Office on Monday wherein the penalties to his actions were to be determined.