Mandatory Credit: Nick Wass/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports
Thomas Bryant wanted to fight Blake Griffin, but the Detroit Pistons star just laughed.
Thursday’s NBA preseason game between the Detroit Pistons and Washington Wizards could hardly be considered appointment viewing, but in the third quarter of an apparent blowout, it quickly got a lot more interesting.
A few minutes into the second half, Wizards center Thomas Bryant tried to seal Pistons star Blake Griffin in the post on a fast break. Griffin, who was outsized and getting backed down closer and closer to the basket, decided to pull the rug out from under him … and then took it a step further by grabbing Bryant by the waist and tossing him aside like a rag doll.
The referees rightfully blew their whistles to call a foul, but Bryant took exception to being treated like a football on a swing toss. Bryant immediately got up, stormed over the Griffin and gave him a hard shove as Detroit’s power forward just stood there.
The lack of response seemed to anger Bryant even more, since Griffin didn’t really seem to care or understand the gravity of the situation. With nobody really stepping in to separate them and Bryant not taking an actual swing, Griffin felt emboldened enough to just grin at the 23-year-old.
Blake Griffin’s smile just made it worse for Thomas Bryant
Griffin was definitely in the wrong here, as this wasn’t even close to a basketball play. But it was admittedly hilarious how he reacted when Bryant made it seem like he was out for blood, just standing there innocently and laughing as the enraged Wizards center couldn’t do anything to retaliate other than the standard “Hold me back!”
Bryant made a show of throwing his own teammates’ arms off him, but with the Wizards down by 21 at that point, it was probably just another way to blow off some steam during a frustrating night for his team.