Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart has been hit with a two-game suspension, while four other players from the Pistons and Timberwolves received one-game bans for their roles in an on-court altercation earlier this week, the NBA announced Tuesday.
Citing Stewart’s “repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts,” the league handed him the harshest penalty. One-game suspensions were issued to Detroit’s Ron Holland II and Marcus Sasser, along with Minnesota’s Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo.
All five were ejected from Sunday’s game, along with Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff and Timberwolves assistant Pablo Prigioni.
“Obviously, things went too far,” Bickerstaff said after the game. “But what you see is guys looking out for one another, guys trying to protect one another, guys trying to have each other’s backs … Those are nonnegotiables in our locker room.”
The incident began when Holland fouled Reid with 8:36 left in the second quarter of the Timberwolves’ 123-104 victory over the Pistons in Minneapolis.
Reid confronted Holland, who then pushed DiVincenzo.
DiVincenzo shoved Holland, and they tumbled into spectators seated along the baseline.
Stewart and Sasser then entered the altercation, “which resulted in a continued escalation of the situation,” the league said.
Reid and DiVincenzo will serve their one-game suspensions Tuesday when the Timberwolves visit Denver.
“I thought they did what they needed to do to protect themselves and their teammates. We’re not disappointed,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said before the game against the Nuggets. “We’re disappointed, obviously, they’re not going to be with us tonight, but it’s part of the landscape of the game.
“The game’s gotten a little bit more physical, I think, which we all embrace. But a lot of teams are playing for a lot of things right now, so there could always be a tipping point. It kind of happens, and you just have to be mindful of it moving forward. But I’m not mad at them.”
Stewart will begin serving his suspension Wednesday when the Pistons visit Oklahoma City. Holland and Sasser will also serve their suspensions in that game.