With the NBA playoffs approaching closer and closer with each game, it is no surprise that tensions would be rising. Teams who had been occupying the very low seeds up till this point would be competing to secure a playoff-qualifying rank. Therefore, going into the ongoing matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the San Antonio Spurs squad would have been expected to put on a different show. However, by ‘different’, one would not have expected Julian Champagnie and the OKC squad to be on the opposite ends of a brawl!

As the third quarter of the OKC-Spurs game rolled on, with 3:05 left on the clock, Jeremy Sochan dished out an assist that led to an effortless two points. But before anyone could celebrate, the focus shifted elsewhere—players suddenly rushed to center court as tensions exploded.

According to beat writer Joel Lorenzi, a scuffle broke out between Lu Dort and Jeremy Sochan for unknown reasons. Julian Champagnie also got involved, along with several other players, as the crowd fueled the chaos.

When the dust settled, the refs ejected Lu Dort, Kenrich Williams, and Julian Champagnie. However, Sochan walked away with just a technical, avoiding ejection—a decision that instantly sparked backlash on X (formerly Twitter).

According to reports, Kenrich Williams was guarding Julian Champagnie before the fight. Champagnie went to pass the ball inside, but he visibly, yet mostly accidentally, elbowed Williams in the face. Accident or not, Williams didn’t take it well. The duo began going at it near the scorers’ table while Jeremy Sochan was making his dunk on one side of the court. Some shoving reportedly occurred between the two players and coaches and officials approached them to break them up.

Julian Champagnie was ejected after putting up 8 points, 0 rebounds, and 2 assists in just 11 minutes, while Lu Dort finished with 9 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 assists in 24 minutes before getting tossed.

Despite the heated altercation, OKC kept their focus, securing a 146-132 victory and solidifying their spot as the top seed in the West.

But instead of celebrating the big win, the fight stole the headlines. Surely, you’d expect the Thunder’s head coach to call out the unnecessary scuffle, right? Well… not exactly.

Mark Daigneault defends Lu Dort’s ejection after altercation with Kenrich Williams and Julian Champagnie

Mark Daigneault addressed the scuffle during the post-game presser. Instead of wholly criticizing it, the OKC head coach said, “We haven’t been a team that’s retaliated very much. We retaliated tonight.” This was a reference to, as Daigneault made it clear, that OKC has the “worst free-throw” differential in the NBA.

More fouls have been called on them than on their opponents. For the head coach, this cumulated frustration is what led to the recent incident. He emphasized on the need to have better poise. However, he still felt that Lu Dort’s punishment was not wholly justified.

“James Williams ejected him for something Lu said. Fair game, like I’m assuming that’s what Lu said. If James Williams wants to eject him for that, I think it’s justified” said Daigneault.

“Again, the issue I have with that is, I’ve heard with my own ears in the last two weeks other players say similar or worse things to officials, with no response, right? And the officials are saying, we are calibrating to the emotion of the game”. Daigneault further added that “If we’re calibrating with one player, we should be calibrating with Lu Dort”.

Do you feel that Julian Champagnie and Lu Dort receiving the ejection was justified, while Jeremy Sochan walked off with just a technical? Let us know in the comments.