MINNEAPOLIS — A brawl in the second quarter of Sunday’s game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Detroit Pistons led to the ejection of five players and two coaches.
Detroit lost head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, along with players Isaiah Stewart, Ron Holland II, and Marcus Sasser. On the Minnesota side, Naz Reid and Dante DiVincenzo were ejected, as well as Timberwolves assistant coach Pablo Prigioni.
The incident erupted with 8:36 remaining in the half, with Detroit leading 39-30. Just moments before, Stewart had been assessed a technical foul for forcefully bumping DiVincenzo after the whistle. Shortly after, Holland was called for a foul when he slapped the ball out of Reid’s hands near the baseline.
Tensions escalated as Holland and Reid exchanged words. DiVincenzo intervened, grabbing Holland’s jersey, triggering an altercation that involved all 10 players on the court, along with several coaches and trainers.
As the chaos unfolded, Bickerstaff and Prigioni engaged in a heated argument and had to be physically separated by team personnel.
The commotion took place just 20 feet from Timberwolves co-owner Alex Rodriguez, who left his courtside seat afterward and appeared to summon help for a fan caught in the scuffle.
Although Stewart was not directly involved in the initial confrontation, this marked his third ejection of the season. He had previously been tossed for pulling down Giannis Antetokounmpo’s jersey during a Nov. 13 game against the Milwaukee Bucks and for shoving Thomas Bryant on Jan. 29 against the Indiana Pacers.
This season, the Pistons have developed a reputation for physical play, drawing comparisons to their infamous “Bad Boy Pistons” of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Stewart has a history of on-court altercations, including a high-profile incident in 2021, when he was ejected and suspended for two games following a heated confrontation with LeBron James.