The NBA as a whole seems to be getting more and more willing to fight. It must be the current political climate or something, because dudes all around the league are wanting to get into it with each other. What happened in this game is nothing compared to Arron Afflalo launching the biggest haymaker since Kermit Washington right at Nemanja Bjelica, but Dwight Powell did legitimately tackle Nikola Jokic. After Jokic bopped him in the face on a rebound.
Honestly, if anyone on the Mavericks was gonna get into a beef-out with Jokic, I thought it was gonna be Salah Mejri for sure. That guy beefs with everyone, I think he even has a mini-beef with himself. Powell was a little unexpected, but he was provoked, so what can I say? Good news is, no one was ejected, no one got a technical, no one went into the stands to punch random fans, maybe the game was more intense after that but that was it.
In-game combat aside, Jokic had a great game, one could even say that this was “vintage” Jokic. He had some really nifty passes, some nifty finishes, and some ultra-exciting tip-ins. The one he had at the end of the half was as exciting as a tip-in can get that’s not a literal game-winner. I was on the edge of my seat for that one.