Former NBA champ Isaiah Rider arrested for second time this month after no-showing court date

Former NBA champion Isaiah Rider has been arrested for the second time this month, with Arizona police recently arresting him for no-showing a court date regarding a protective order, according to TMZ.

“An individual named Isaiah Rider was arrested earlier today on a warrant for failing to appear at a court hearing on December 15,” police told the outlet.

“He was booked and processed at the Gilbert-Chandler Unified Holding Facility.”

Rider, 54, had previously been arrested on Dec. 4 in Gilbert, Ariz., for violating a court order, per TMZ, being charged with one count of interfering with judicial proceedings.

The outlet reported at the time that Rider’s wife, Vanessa, filed for a protection order in July, alleging that the former first-round pick had been hostile toward her on multiple occasions.

“You’re gonna get your ass slapped,” Vanessa alleged Rider told her and their 15-year-old son, per the outlet.

“Shut the f–k up before I kick this door down and whoop you.”

Rider denied the allegations, instead citing a contentious divorce process after he filed in November 2024.

“I deny the allegations,” he countered, according to TMZ. “She did this because I filed for divorce.”

Vanessa reportedly received the protective order in July, which called for Rider to have no contact with her or their son and stay away from the couple’s home and the son’s school.

Rider reportedly countered in documents that he only received papers for the order in December.

A hearing was set for earlier this week to decide on whether to extend the protective order, and Vanessa showed up for the hearing, per court documents obtained by TMZ. The judge OK’d extending the protective status.

“The Order of Protection was sought and granted solely for safety reasons, to protect myself and my child from further harm,” Vanessa said to TMZ in a statement. “It was not obtained for leverage, retaliation, or any strategic purpose, and any suggestion otherwise is false and harmful—particularly to victims of domestic violence.”

“We ask that the public and the media respect the integrity of the judicial process, the privacy of a minor victim, and the seriousness of domestic-violence allegations while this matter proceeds through the courts.”

Rider spent nine seasons in the NBA from 1993 to 2002 after being drafted fifth overall by the Timberwolves in the 1993 NBA Draft.

He won the 1994 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.

He spent three years with the Timberwolves, three with the Trail Blazers and then closed out his career with single seasons with the Hawks, Lakers and Nuggets, respectively.

While Rider did not make the Lakers’ playoff roster in 2001, he still received a championship ring after they vanquished the 76ers, according to Yahoo.

Rider averaged 18.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists for his career and scored a career-high 20.4 points per game in his 1994-95 sophomore campaign.