A heated confrontation between Miami Heat and New Orleans Pelicans players resulted in four ejections and two fan removals on Friday night. The incident occurred early in the fourth quarter, when Pelicans star Zion Williamson stole the ball from Heat’s Jimmy Butler and was fouled hard by Kevin Love. The foul sparked a scuffle that involved several players from both teams, as well as coaches and staff.
HEAT-PELICANS SCUFFLE. 4 players EJECTED. pic.twitter.com/Z1VU5AIsM9
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 24, 2024
Pelicans and Heat fight pic.twitter.com/ifVw6dcdsG
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 24, 2024
The main aggressors were Heat reserve Thomas Bryant and Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado, who exchanged punches near the scorers’ table. They were joined by Butler and Pelicans forward Naji Marshall, who had a neck grab earlier in the melee. All four players were ejected from the game after a lengthy review by the officials. Love was assessed a common foul for his initial contact with Williamson.
The brawl also provoked some fans in the stands, who threw objects at the Miami players as they left the court. Security intervened and escorted two fans out of the arena. The game resumed with Miami leading 84-81 and went on to win 106-95. Williamson finished with 23 points and 9 rebounds for the Pelicans, while Butler had 23 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists for the Heat.
“I wasn’t tripping about KLove cause he was protecting me on my fall… All the sudden I see Butler lunging toward Naji… It’s hard not to love shit like that. Its competitive… People riding for their teammates”
— Zion Williamson on the Pels-Heat altercation pic.twitter.com/J0P2gFT8Kv
— Pelicans Film Room (@PelsFilmRoom) February 24, 2024
