Why did Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers fight?
Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers got into an altercation on Friday night when the Minnesota Timberwolves hosted the Orlando Magic and took a 127-120 loss. During the game, Rivers initiated an argument with Orlando's bench. Bamba didn't appreciate the gesture and threw hands with the Wolves guard, and Jalen Suggs joined the slugfest.
Following the altercation, the three players involved got suspended. Bamba is out for four games, Rivers three and Suggs one. One of Rivers' teammates, Jalen McDaniels, also got involved in the fight but was only fined $20,000 for his actions.
AUSTIN RIVERS AND MO BAMBA GET INTO IT 🤯 https://t.co/kUFYXgPvI5
Rivers opened up on why he initiated the fight in the first place. He said that it was Bamba and Markelle Fultz who initially got on his nerves.
The Wolves guard explained that both Magic players made fun of him after missing a 3-point attempt. Rivers didn't appreciate that and decided to make himself heard by confronting the bench:
"I'm not really gonna get into what he said. I'm not gonna snitch on the dude or whatever, but I just didn't like the way he was talking to me, for no reason, too. I don't even know that dude. I don't know anything about him. Obviously I just know he's a player for the Magic. "
He continued:
"He proceeded to talk, so that next possession when I went down there I just said, 'You know, just pretty much just keep it respectful, bro.' I'm not trying to portray myself as some wanna-be tough guy. That's not even my MO. But, for anybody who knows me, I'm not going to let somebody disrespect me or talk crazy."
How did Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers perform on Friday night?
While everyone is fussing over Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers' recent altercation, let's not forget that the NBA promotes the sport of basketball. Looking at their performances on Friday night, neither of them performed well. That was especially true of Rivers.
Rivers was clearly having a bad night, as he missed all his shots and ended up with only one assist. Considering that, it's apparent that the Minnesota Timberwolves guard was having an off night and didn't appreciate hearing about it from the opposing Orlando Magic.
As for Bamba, he performed better than Rivers, adding 11 points, four rebounds and two assists. The Magic big man clearly knew he was performing better than the Wolves guard, hence his audacity to make fun of his opponent. Nevertheless, NBA players should avoid getting into unnecessary fights like the one Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers got into.