LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Clippers suspended forward Zach Randolph for two games on Monday after he was arrested for investigation of drunken driving hours after the team's 88-85 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Two California Highway Patrol officers saw a white Rolls-Royce weaving on Interstate 405 around 2:25 a.m., Officer Tony Garrett said.
The car was traveling south in the Culver City area near west Los Angeles.
The officers pulled the car over and identified Randolph as the driver. Garrett said alcohol could be smelled inside the car. After conducting a field sobriety test, the officers arrested Randolph and took him to the Men's Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles.
A CHP spokeswoman said there wasn't any information regarding whether Randolph took a breath test.
The power forward was cited and released at 9:01 a.m and spoke with Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy at practice. He also spoke with reporters, but wouldn't comment on specifics of the incident.
"I regret that the situation happened. I hope people don't rush to judgment," Randolph said. "All I have to do now is focus on basketball and let the process run its course. Let it work itself out."
The incident wasn't Randolph's first run-in with the law. While with the Portland Trail Blazers in 2003, he was arrested after an officer noticed the smell of marijuana coming from his vehicle.
This season has been a rocky one for Randolph. His father died in March and he was suspended two games in February for punching a Phoenix player.
Randolph had 18 points and 10 rebounds in Sunday night's game. The Clippers have five games remaining in the regular season and are already down three players due to injuries.
"Besides having guys out on injury, I'm going to have a guy out two games on suspension," Dunleavy said. "That was hard to do, but I just felt like we had to do that."
Randolph downplayed his latest misstep.
"Situations like this happen," he said. "It happens all around the league in every sport. A lot of stuff I can't comment on right now."
Dunleavy also took a philosophical approach.
"Obviously this was bad judgment as far as being out the time he was out, etc. My initial thought was, 'What a fool, this guy was out clubbing,' " the coach said. "[But] he was traveling from a condo in Marina del Rey to his home in Marina del Rey, probably about a mile difference. He was in a couple of vehicles with his family members and he was pulled over."