The NBA announced on Tuesday (1st) the suspension of five players involved in a brawl during Sunday’s game between the Detroit Pistons and the Minnesota Timberwolves. As expected, the incident resulted in significant penalties for both teams.<\/p>
Pistons center Isaiah Stewart received a two-game suspension. His teammates, Ron Holland and Marcus Sasser, will each serve a one-game suspension. On the Timberwolves’ side, Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo were also suspended for one game.<\/p>
The league justified Stewart’s stricter punishment due to his “repeated history of unsportsmanlike conduct.”<\/em> Previously, he had missed six games due to fights in his career, including altercations with Drew Eubanks of the Utah Jazz and, most notably, LeBron James.<\/p> As a result, Stewart, Holland, and Sasser will be absent from the Pistons’ matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday. Additionally, Stewart will also miss the game against the Toronto Raptors. Meanwhile, Reid and DiVincenzo missed the Timberwolves’ game against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday.<\/p> In a heated game from the start, tensions between the teams peaked after Holland committed a hard defensive foul on Reid. The Timberwolves center took issue with the play and confronted the rookie.<\/p> At that moment, DiVincenzo also approached Holland, and the two began shoving each other. The disagreement quickly escalated into a full-on brawl, with the three players falling into the front row of the stands.<\/p> Shortly after, Stewart and Sasser joined the altercation to defend their rookie teammate, pushing Reid and DiVincenzo and further escalating the situation. All five players were assessed technical fouls and ejected from the game.<\/p>How the Altercation Started<\/h2>