NEW YORK -- Latrell Sprewell might have broken his hand by throwing an errant punch at the boyfriend of a woman who vomited on his new yacht, the New York Post reported Friday.

	Sprewell

The newspaper, citing two eyewitnesses who asked not to be identified, said the New York Knicks' star was injured when he slammed his right hand into a wall during a skirmish at a late-night party.

Agent Robert Gist acknowledged Friday that Sprewell hurt his hand aboard the luxury yacht he bought over the summer.

Sprewell underwent surgery Tuesday to repair a displaced fracture of the bone beneath his right pinkie. He will wear a cast for a month and is expected to be sidelined at least six weeks.

The Knicks were stunned when Sprewell arrived in New York on Monday with a broken hand. After initially saying Sprewell would join the team for training camp in Charleston, S.C., the Knicks said Sprewell had been told to stay in New York until the team returned.

Knicks president Scott Layden and coach Don Chaney plan to meet with Sprewell on Monday.

Gist told The Associated Press he did not speak to Sprewell about exactly what caused the injury, although the agent was quoted in detail in the Post describing how Sprewell banged his hand while shifting the boat's navigational system, frantically pulling on a rope to redirect the vessel after it was smacked by a wave.

"Quite frankly, I don't care how it happened. I care more about his recovery and the upcoming season,'' Gist said Friday.

Gist maintained that Sprewell did not realize the severity of the injury until he arrived in New York and had the hand X-rayed.

The two eyewitnesses quoted by the Post said that after they sailed on his yacht Sept. 20, Sprewell had a party while it was docked at the lakefront area in downtown Milwaukee.

An argument ensued about 2:30 a.m. after a woman Sprewell hadn't invited vomited on a carpet by the bar area. Sprewell wanted the woman to leave the boat, but her boyfriend objected.

Sprewell took a swing at the boyfriend, missed and hit a wall. Sprewell cursed in pain and asked his guests not to say anything about it, the Post said.