Report: Parker benched vs. Heat for disclosing team discourse to media

Milwaukee Bucks forward Jabari Parker was brought off the bench for the first time this season Saturday night in a 109-97 loss to the Miami Heat for violating a team rule, league sources told ESPN's Chris Haynes.

While head coach Jason Kidd wouldn't go into detail on what the rule was, Parker was reportedly punished for "disclosing locker room discourse to the media" following Milwaukee's 16-point loss to the Orlando Magic on Friday night.

The Bucks held a team meeting after dropping their fourth game in a row, with Parker later telling reporters how he had voiced his frustrations to his teammates in the locker room, as well as confirming that there was in fact a meeting - something the team would have preferred to have kept private.

"I spoke up for the first time and it didn't go my way," Parker said. "I was getting thrashed, but hey, as long as I give them another perspective, I did my job."

His teammates reportedly were the ones who picked Parker's punishment, and after much deliberation, decided that the former No. 2 overall pick coming off the bench for one night would be the best course of action.

Rookie Thon Maker started in his place, scoring six points and grabbing a single board in 18 minutes, while Parker finished with 16 points, seven rebounds, and four assists in 32 minutes for the second unit.

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Parker is averaging career highs across the board of 20.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 2.8 dimes in 43 appearances. He's expected to return to his starting gig Monday against the Houston Rockets.