?Malice in the Pizza Palace?: Sucker Punch Thrown in Violent Altercation at NBA Game Ignites Twitter

The Detroit Pistons and the Orlando Magic went head-to-head tonight at the Little Caesars Arena. During the second quarter, a violent altercation disrupted the game. What eventually became the biggest highlight of the evening was also considered one of the biggest brawls this season. NBA fans were in utter disbelief as players from both teams got heated. One fan tweeted, “Malice in the Pizza Palace“.

Magic’s Moritz Wagner had initially shoved Pistons’ Killian Hayes?into the Pistons’ bench while trying to get control of a loose ball. As the Pistons bench reacted to Wagner’s shove, Hayes quickly retaliated.

NBA fans left shocked after brawl during Pistons vs Magic

Killian Hayes subsequently punched Wagner in the back of his head. Players and staff from both sides rushed in, as more people got involved in the scuffle. The stadium announcers kept telling the shocked crowds to “not move from their seats”. Fans online erupted after seeing what unfolded on the court.

Here are some of the reactions from NBA Twitter:

Wagner subsequently got a flagrant 2 foul and was ejected from the game. The Pistons’ Hayes and Hamidou Diallo were also asked to leave the game for their roles in the incident. Diallo came to defend his team-mate by pushing Wagner from behind.

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According to The Mercury News, Wagner has been popular for “irritating opposing players”. They noted that Wagner would find ways to get under the opponent’s skin. His teammate, number one draft pick Paolo Banchero, also attributed Wagner’s qualities to becoming an important inclusion in the team. Banchero added, “He?s just out there yelling, getting on the ground, frustrating the other team ? just all the little things you have to have“.

Pistons vs Magic

For the Orlando Magic, things didn’t look up following the altercation, as they recorded their second consecutive loss. The Detroit Pistons won the game 121-101 in the end.

Before being ejected, Killian Hayes scored 5 points and 2 rebounds. Hamidou Diallo scored 11 points and 5 rebounds. Moritz Wagner posted 7 points with 4 rebounds.

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According to Sports Illustrated, it does not look good for the Magic to have back-to-back losses after “following a stretch where the team won eight of nine games”.

What did you think of the incident that took place between the Pistons and the Magic? Let us know in the comments below.