An ugly scuffle broke out in Thursday night's Grizzlies-Cavaliers game, when Memphis' Dillon Brooks punched Cleveland star Donovan Mitchell in the groin, prompting Mitchell to fling the ball at, and shove, Brooks in response.
Most everyone watching the game thought Brooks was to blame for provoking the confrontation -- but, curiously, NBA on TNT analyst Reggie Miller seemed to see it differently.
"Clearly, to me, Mitchell was the aggressor, just by looking at it initially," Miller said.
Miller surmised that Brooks and Mitchell may have had outstanding bad blood from Mitchell's days with the Utah Jazz.
"Remember, Mitchell was in the West, with Utah," Miller said. "So they've seen each other a lot."
When the dust settled, both players were ejected from the game.
The Cavs got the last laugh, though, coming away with a 128-113 victory over the visiting Grizz.
After the game, Mitchell sounded off about the scrape and Brooks' borderline maneuver. Clearly, Mitchell did not believe it was an accident.
“This has happened to other players throughout this league, and it's bulls--t,” Mitchell told reporters. “If we're being honest with you, it's complete bulls--t. Those guys, they talk s--t and that's fine. That's all part of basketball. We all grew up playing that way. But when you start doing little cheap s--t like that, ain't it. And that, that's honestly where my frustration lies.”
Meanwhile, the real last laugh may have belonged to social media, where users had some fun at Miller's expense over his strange interpretation of events.
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