SUMMARY
- A major brawl between four players from the Heat vs Pelicans game broke up.
- Thomas Bryant and Jose Alvarado were throwing hands after the fight between Jimmy Butler and Naji Marshall settled down.
There were a lot of scuffles that broke out during the second set of games following the 2024 NBA All-Star Game. But the brawl during the Heat vs Pelicans was the most intense of them all. Throughout the game, both teams constantly went back and forth on the court. Miami, a team that is ranked much lower than NOLA was not in favor of winning the game either. However, the Heat certainly showed out the most especially since NOLA was missing an offensive centerpiece.
During the fourth quarter of the game, while the Heat was in the lead 84-80, things got a little frustrating in New Orleans. While Zion Williamson attacked the basket during a play, he felt as if Jimmy Butler or Kevin Love had fouled him. Butler grabbed the defensive rebound before Williamson stole the ball. Love fouled Zion with a grab, thus putting Williamson to the floor.
This was when both teams started attacking each other. Butler and the Pelicans’ Naji Marshall began chirping at each other before the latter choked Butler. It took multiple players, coaches, and officials to pull the two away from each other. However, another fight erupted on the sideline between Thomas Bryant and Jose Alvarado.
Four players including Jimmy Butler were ejected from the Heat vs Pelicans game
The Heat vs Pelicans game came to a brief halt while the referees discussed and rewatched the scuffle. You can also see Bryant and Alvarado exchanging a couple of jabs before getting pulled away from each other. Four individuals were ejected out of the game, Butler, Bryant, Marshall, and Alvarado. As crucial as Butler’s presence was on the floor, the Heat still managed to snag a victory against the Pelicans.
Following the game, Miami head coach, Erik Spoelstra addressed the brawl. He said, “It was just, I think, a misunderstanding of the play. I think Zion slipped on the play when K-Love grabbed him and it looked a lot worse than what it was. And then everybody kind of overreacted.” Spoelstra’s analysis of the play could have possibly been what happened. Love, who was the biggest reason why the scuffle unfolded, didn’t have much of a reaction. Neither did Williamson following the play.
Announcers blamed the officials for the intense Heat vs Pelicans game scuffle
While the brawl took place during the Heat vs Pelicans matchup, the announcers had a fairly interesting take on it. One of the officials was heard saying, “This is what happens when the officials don’t call fouls. This is what happens.” As unfortunate as it may sound, the league has been having trouble with officials and their questionable judgments. Players and game officials have not gotten along lately.
Pelicans and Heat fight 👀 pic.twitter.com/ifVw6dcdsG
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 24, 2024
Despite the major brawl, the game went on to finish with the Heat emerging on top. NOLA did not have Brandon Ingram on the floor, which did affect their scoring for the night. Williamson finished with 23 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists. Herbert Jones took over Ingram’s absence and finished with 19 points. But Heat’s defense had proven itself as one of the best in the league yet again.