“The owner of the opposing team? 메이저놀이터whatever. I don’t care at all”
Game 4 of the second round of the Western Playoff between the Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets held at the Phoenix Footprint Center on the 8th. A somewhat absurd situation occurred with 2 minutes and 36 seconds left in the second quarter.
During the loose ball contest, the ball bounced into the crowd, and a man in the crowd grabbed the ball and didn’t let go. This man was Matt Ishbia (43), who took office as the new owner of Phoenix.
Denver’s star center Nikola Jokic tried to retrieve the ball that Ishbia had wrapped around his right arm, but Ischbia refused to let it go. Eventually, the ball was kicked out by the recoil.
From this point on, an unusual current flowed. Yokichi pushed Ishvia’s chest with his left arm. He couldn’t say the intensity was too strong, but it was hard to deny that physical contact had occurred. And the target was the owner of the opposing team. Ischvia collapsed into her chair, and Jokic received a technical foul for this action.
From the 2020-2021 regular season, Jokic won the regular league MVP for two consecutive years. And the armed conflict between the opposing club owners aroused great interest. Jokic, who is averaging 30.8 points this playoff, contributed 53 points and 11 assists. Despite Yokichi’s performance, the home team Phoenix took the game 129-124, and the series record was 2-2.
The topic of the interview after the game was definitely the clash between the owner of Phoenix and two consecutive MVPs. Yokichi said, “They gave me a technical foul for using my elbow on a fan. The fan made physical contact with me first. I thought the secretariat had to protect players… ” he said, devastated.
He continued, “He is just a fan. Whether he owns the Phoenix Suns or not, he’s just a fan on the court when the game starts. No one should interfere in the game,” he raised his voice.
Denver coach Mike Malone’s tone was much stronger. “I didn’t see exactly what happened,” he said. You have to watch the video one more time to know for sure,” he said. “It seems crazy that Yokichi received a technical foul. He tried to receive the ball, but a fan refused to let it go. He was a fan trying to intervene. just give me a ball I thought it was too much for them to judge, but I don’t understand.”
When a local reporter told him that the fan was the owner of Phoenix, manager Malone said, “What? He doesn’t care at all,” he replied coldly.
The match between the two teams with a clear storyline continues in the 5th game. It will be held at the Ball Arena at 11:00 am on the 10th.