With less than two minutes remaining in Miami’s comfortable win, the Grizzlies’ Scottie Pippen Jr. and the Heat’s Myron Gardner got into an argument that will cost them both some money and possibly even suspensions.
The game started late in the fourth quarter when Pippen and Gardner were fighting for a rebound under the basket and Pippen just tossed Gardner aside (no foul was called, and in what felt like a physical game). As the Grizzlies gained a five-on-four advantage in transition, Pippen, who was trailing, hit an open three-pointer. One second after the ball was released, Gardner rushed up from behind and knocked Pippen to the ground. Pippen stood up, jogged nonchalantly across the court, then went straight to Gardner, launching a fight that spilled into the first row.
After the game, Pippen said Gardner’s shot was cheap. by 5 Reasons Sports.
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“I thought it was a mean attack. He hit me when I didn’t see him. I thought it was a gentle move. I just thought he needed a hug on the other end.”
You can be sure the league office will impose fines and possibly even a suspension as a result of the altercation.
It’s not as serious a matter as the games at Charlotte and Detroit or resulting in four suspensions — and it doesn’t appear that any Heat or Grizzlies players left the bench to join the fight — but the league will have a say because it doesn’t want this to become a trend.
Miami won the game 136-120, trailing Norman Powell by 25 points.
