NBA imposes suspensions on Stewart, Duren, Bridges, and Diabate following Monday’s altercation.
The NBA has imposed a seven-game suspension on Detroit Pistons forward-center Isaiah Stewart for leaving the bench and engaging in a fight during Monday night’s game against the Charlotte Hornets, which was marred by brawls.
The league also handed down four-game suspensions to Hornets forwards Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabate for their roles in the fight that escalated midway through the third quarter. Additionally, Pistons center Jalen Duren received a two-game suspension for instigating the altercation and participating in the fight, as stated by the league.
All four players received technical fouls and were ejected from the game on Monday. Stewart and Duren will commence their suspensions on Thursday when the Pistons face the Toronto Raptors. Bridges and Diabate will also start serving their suspensions on Thursday when the Hornets take on the Atlanta Hawks.
The league indicated that Stewart’s extended suspension was partly due to his history of unsportsmanlike conduct.
A source informed ESPN’s Shams Charania that Duren will still be eligible to participate in the NBA All-Star game, despite his suspension. He was selected as an Eastern Conference reserve last week.
The incident began when Diabate committed a defensive foul on Duren with 7:09 left in the third quarter. Duren confronted Diabate, leading to a head-butting motion. Duren then pushed Diabate in the face with his open right hand. Stewart subsequently left the bench to confront Bridges, who retaliated with a punch, resulting in a scuffle between the two players. At one point, Stewart placed Bridges in a headlock and landed several strikes to his head.
The altercation lasted over 30 seconds and concluded with a brief police presence on the court.
Duren later described the game as “overly competitive.”
“Emotions were flaring,” he remarked. “Ultimately, we would prefer to keep it to basketball, but situations arise. Everyone was just playing hard.”
Bridges took to Instagram late Monday night to express: “Sorry Hornets nation! Sorry Hornets Organization! Always gonna protect my teammates forever.”
The suspensions will result in financial losses of $724,138 for Stewart, $689,655 for Bridges, $89,423 for Duren, and $62,641 for Diabate, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks.
Information from the Associated Press was utilized in this report.
