NBA Suspends Four Players For Fight In Pistons-Hornets Game

The NBA has announced suspensions for the players involved in the Feb. 9 fight in the game between the Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets.

Isaiah Stewart was suspended for seven games, Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabate were suspended for four games and Jalen Duran was suspended for two games. 

The fight happened in the third quarter of the game. Duran drove to the basket and received a hard hit from Diabate. Duran expressed his anger to Diabate, who punched Duran. This sparked a fight that took a minute to fully stop.

Bridges attempted to defend his teammate and attempted to hit Duran. Stewart saw this and started to punch Bridges. 

Stewart received the longest suspension for several reasons. First, he wasn’t in the game at the time the fight broke out. NBA rules strictly prohibit players from stepping onto the court during a fight. The press release for the suspension said that Stewart’s history of violent behavior on the court also contributed to his lengthy suspension. This is Stewart’s fifth time being suspended. 

Lamelo Ball and Tre Mann were seen stepping on the court during the fight. Generally, this is supposed to lead to a one-game suspension. However, they left the playing area immediately upon request, so the league decided to be lenient with them. 

The players will serve the first game of their suspensions on Feb. 11. Since this suspension falls during the All-Star break, Stewart will be suspended until March 3. 

Although Duran will also be suspended through All-Star weekend, this suspension does not affect his eligibility for the All-Star game. Duran was named an All-Star for the first time in his career and will represent Team USA-A with his teammate Cade Cunningham. He will be eligible to return to regular-season play on Feb. 21.