Five players were ejected from Friday night’s game between the Orlando Magic and the Minnesota Timberwolves after a brawl broke out in the third quarter. Two players, Austin Rivers and Mo Bamba, were at the center of the whole thing, with Rivers running up the court and towards Orlando’s bench, where he was confronted by Bamba.
Things escalated between the two quickly, and eventually, the pair were tossed from the game. Apparently, they weren’t done with one another as the two got into a confrontation after they left the court.
Orlando 90
Timberwolves 75Wretched night for Wolves & we had a fight. After ejections, Mo Bamba came charging down hallway at Austin Rivers. Bamba got to home locker room door & security was pushing back Rivers. The foul-mouthed insults hurled were loud & impressive.
— Patrick Reusse (@Patrick_Reusse) February 4, 2023
Both players were asked about the incident after the game, with Bamba passing on the opportunity to comment and Rivers claiming he was acting in self-defense. Things were not quite as cordial on Instagram, though, with both players posting things about just went down. Bamba went first with a meme that seemed to imply that Rivers had this coming.
Mo Bamba on his IG story https://t.co/azVydRhd7y pic.twitter.com/XpPepakMoR
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) February 4, 2023
Rivers, meanwhile, decided to post a note to his IG Story where he called out Bamba, saying “we only know u from an old rap song,” and insisting that people in Orlando “don’t mess with u there.”
And now Austin Rivers has responded pic.twitter.com/18zDJ2RaqP
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) February 4, 2023
In a bit of unfortunate news for anyone who hopes to see these two step on the court again this season, Friday’s game was the last matchup between the Magic and the Timberwolves of the 2022-23 NBA season.