Dallas Mavericks guard Raymond Felton has been suspended for the first four games of next season after pleading guilty to gun charges in New York while a member of the Knicks, the NBA announced Thursday.
Felton pleaded guilty last month to attempted criminal possession of a weapon and criminal possession of a firearm. As part of a plea deal that allowed him to avoid jail time, Felton admitted he knowingly had a large-capacity ammunition magazine and a semi-automatic pistol without a license.
"I demonstrated poor judgment and I take full responsibility for my actions," Felton said in a statement released Thursday by the Mavs. "Moving forward, I'm eager to get to Dallas, to start fresh and make a positive impact in the Dallas metropolitan area."
The criminal case arose last winter, when Felton was in the midst of the breakup of his marriage and a poor season with New York. He was traded to Dallas along with Tyson Chandler in a six-player deal in June.
Felton had to pay a $5,000 fine and must do 500 hours of community service to satisfy the terms of his plea deal.
"Today we were made aware of Raymond Felton's suspension," Mavs owner Mark Cuban said in a statement released by the team. "We also learned that Raymond will be permitted to complete his community service outside the state of New York. The Mavericks are working with Raymond and the court to develop a community service program that will have a positive and lasting impact on North Texas."
The Mavs plan to have Felton, Devin Harris and free-agent addition Jameer Nelson split time at point guard while getting spot duty behind Monta Ellis at shooting guard.
