New Suns owner Mat Ishbia was involved in an altercation with Nikola Jokic on the sidelines during Game 4. His thoughts on a suspension were surprising.
The on-court heat between the Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets spilled onto the sidelines in the first half of Game 4. Without about two minutes remaining in the first half, Josh Okogie of the Suns fell out of bounds and the ball ended up in the hands of new Suns owner Mat Ishbia who was sitting courtside.
As Ishibia bent over to check on Okogie, Nikola Jokic attempted to take the ball from him to resume play. Ishbia resisted, and the ball popped out, flying back another few seats. Jokic reached for the ball and pushed Ishbia out of the way as he want to rise out of his seat again.
Will Nikola Jokic or Matt Ishbia be suspended for Game 5?
This is a bit of a gray area and it’s not clear if anyone will be disciplined. Jokic was assessed a technical foul at the time but conceivably be fined or suspended for making contact with a fan. However, Jokic never actually left the court (which would be an automatic suspension) and Ishbia was interfering by continuing to hold the ball and also made contact with Jokic, which could theoretically invite discipline from the league.
Ishbia, for his part, has released a statement hoping that not on is suspended and everyone moves on.
The Suns are especially sensitive to this issue, remembering when Boris Diaw and Amare Stoudemire triggered automatic suspensions for leaving the bench area in the 2007 Western Conference Semifinals after Robert Horry hip-checked Steve Nash into the scorer’s table.
The Suns were able to tie the series in Game 4, 129-124, despite 53 points from Jokic. Obviously, any discipline for him is a much bigger deal than Ishbia being forced to watch from home instead of sitting courtside. Game 5 is in Denver, Tuesday night.
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