Jimmy Butler was one of four players ejected after a wild brawl broke out between Heat and Pelicans players last night. A hard foul on Zion Williamson caused tensions to boil over, with Butler and Naji Marshall seen grabbing each other by the neck. Thomas Bryant and Jose Alvarado were also ejected alongside Butler and Marshall. However, for many fans, this was a very familiar sight and thus, they wanted very similar consequences. Earlier this season, Draymond Green received a five-game suspension after putting Rudy Gobert in a chokehold. Fans argued that if the league had any consistency, similar punishments would be handed down as a result of the brawl in New Orleans.
However, Butler argued that he didn’t think his actions warranted a suspension. Furthermore, he accused Williamson of flopping, causing the whole debacle to begin with. Meanwhile, Williamson appeared to place the blame on Butler. “I wasn’t tripping about K-Love because he actually protected me on my fall. All of a sudden I see Butler kind of lunging toward Naji, so I’m trying to get there like, ‘Yo, relax, like what’s going on?'” Williamson said.
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Naji Marshall choking Jimmy Butler got me howling pic.twitter.com/VkYiFXd0eW
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod(@big_business_) February 24, 2024
However, tensions surrounding the game had been high even before the teams took the court. Earlier in the day, The Pelicans took shots at Stephen A. Smith after the ESPN personality went on yet another rant about team star Zion Williamson. The team’s official X account posted a graphic showing Smith’s dismal college stats of 1.5 points and 1 assist a game.
Appearing on Get Up! earlier in the day, Smith had once again gone after Williamson’s weight. “Zion Williamson, it’s not about his game. It’s about how many burgers he’s eating. Whether or not he is going to be in shape or keep eating McDonald’s and have chefs clamoring for him to come to their restaurants. That’s what he has to prove, that the chefs don’t love him any longer. That he’s committed to playing basketball and being in shape,” Smith said as the Pelicans prepare to face the Heat later today. Williamson, who is listed as a game-time decision due to a foot injury, is averaging 22.5/5.4/4.9 this season. He is shooting a league 12th-best 58.5% from the field.
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