Lakers center Jaxson Hayes will miss Los Angeles’s contest on Thursday vs. the 76ers after he was handed a one-game suspension without pay from the NBA on Wednesday.
Hayes was found to have pushed Wizards mascot during pregame introductions when the Lakers traveled to Washington on Jan. 30. That seems like a first for the league.
It’s unclear at this time what prompted Hayes to push the mascot. Hayes was not a starter in the game, which the Lakers won 142–111.
A video posted by Bleacher Report has since been released showing the incident. G-Wiz was running across the court when Hayes appears to push him out of the way.
Jaxson Hayes shoved Wizards mascot, G-Wiz, in pre-game introductions
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 4, 2026
Hayes has been suspended for one game, per @ShamsCharania pic.twitter.com/x4xz2Ndw2I
The Wizards’ mascot is known as “G-Wiz” and is a blue creature of some sort. He’s known to prank the opposing team during games, like many other mascots, but it’s not yet known what happened to spark the Hayes incident.
The following has been released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/l5eKjuBZLQ
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) February 4, 2026
Coming off the bench in that game, Hayes scored 10 points and added three rebounds and one assist in 14 minutes.
Hayes is in the slam dunk contest lineup next week, so he’ll be participating fresh off of his suspension.
More NBA on Sports Illustrated
- James Harden Issues Statement Thanking Clippers After Trade
- James Harden Reportedly Sets Date to Debut for Cavaliers
- Chris Paul Finally Parts Ways With Clippers in Three-Team Trade
- Jazz Set to Acquire Lonzo Ball in Trade With Cavaliers
- Revisiting the Luka Dončić Trade After the Mavericks’ Stunning Anthony Davis Deal
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Lakers Player Suspended by NBA for Getting Physical With Wizards’ Mascot.
