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Report: Rockets feared for Sterling Brown’s life after bloody assault

The assault against Houston Rockets guard Sterling Brown early Monday morning in Miami left many around the team fearful of severe injuries, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania and Kelly Iko.

In a statement the next day, the team confirmed that Brown had suffered facial lacerations, but said he was expected to make a full recovery.

In Wednesday’s story, Charania offered some additional and harrowing details regarding what took place in Miami:

As the day wore on Monday, word of the incident began to spread across the Rockets organization. Many players and coaches feared for Brown’s health, suspecting he may have been in critical condition at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

When Brown was admitted into a private, priority room in the emergency room, blood was everywhere, dripped all over the floor. Brown needed multiple heavy stitching jobs for his facial injuries and underwent several tests, according to sources. He was discharged Monday late in the afternoon.

“If he hadn’t been as physically strong and tough, he might not have made it out of the situation (Sunday) night,” one source told The Athletic. “He could have died.”

According to the report, Brown and a few other teammates went to the Booby Trap strip club in the overnight hours. From there, Brown reportedly entered the wrong sprinter fan on his way out of the club and had a heated exchange of words with those in the vehicle. That led to those individuals jumping Brown and physically beating him up.

Brown’s agency representation at Priority Sports plans to work with a private investigator and Miami police to investigate the incident, the report indicates. There is no known timetable for the 26-year-old, who has also battled a sore left knee in recent weeks, to return to the court.

A 6-foot-5 guard, Brown has become one of Houston’s best perimeter defenders and shooters this season. In 24.1 minutes, Brown is averaging 8.2 points (42.3% on 3-pointers) and 4.4 rebounds per game.

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Rockets say Sterling Brown was victim of assault, suffered facial lacerations