標籤: scuffle

OKLAHOMA CITY – Following Friday’s 127-121 win in overtime, Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault gave his honest opinion on Lou Dort’s fourth quarter ejection for a scuffle with Denver Nuggets All-Star Nikola Jokic. The two were forced to separate, which led to a physical altercation between Thunder centers Jaylin Williams and Jokic. Both centers received double technical fouls, while Dort’s night ended in the fourth quarter.

Daigneault addressed Dort after the victory fourth trimester ejection Coming off of their seven-game series in the Western Conference Semifinals, he reminded reporters how familiar his Thunder team is to the Nuggets.

“That was a weird game. These are two teams that played each other in a seven-game series. We’re in the same division. We’ve played each other 100 times,” Daigneault said. “They know our playbook. We know their playbook. It is what it is. It’s going to be an imperfect game, and things escalate like that sometimes. I know Lu [Dort]. I know [Nikola] Jokic.

“I know J-Will. I don’t think anybody is trying to hurt anybody; they’re just great competitors. It just ended up being over. I think it was nothing more than that.”

Jaylin Williams and Nikola Jokic just went here to OKC.

Both could have been ejected after Williams came to the defense of Lou Dort. The fight is still under review pic.twitter.com/1zxS2glQJT

-Joshua Peacock (@Joe_Sway) 28 February 2026

One could argue that Nikola Jokic took his frustration out on Lou Dort’s lead-2 layup on Williams, who defended his teammate, as most centers in the NBA do. This likely played into the referee’s decision to keep Jokic in the game, causing him and Jaylin to be slapped with a double technical foul.

Daigneault’s only hope is that if the situation were reversed, Jokic would be heading to the locker room because of a major-2.

“I will say this: If J-Will is running upfield and slips, we expect a flagrant -2 from this point forward. That’s all,” Daigneault said. “If that’s the precedent, if it becomes a malicious game, and Major-2 is the line in the sand on that, then we would expect that if it’s J-Will. We would expect that if it’s anyone. And if that’s the case, we’re good.”

Mark Daigneault’s honest opinion on Lu Dort’s ejection after scuffling with Nikola Jokic: “I will say this: If J-Will is running the floor and slips up, we expect a flagrant -2 from this point forward.

That is all.” pic.twitter.com/HFTcdINFdN

-Joshua Peacock (@Joe_Sway) 28 February 2026

Williams finished with 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and a block off the bench before closing out the Thunder’s victory in overtime.

Mark Daigneault missing overtime on Thunder’s SGA

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault sat Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in overtime of Friday’s win against the Nuggets. Due to an abdominal injury that caused him to miss the Thunder’s last nine games, Gilgeous-Alexander was on a one-minute ban that went on unannounced before the defending champions’ showdown against the Nuggets.

Daigneault explained what was a factor in the Thunder decision Gilgeous-Alexander was benched after the fourth quarter.

“He’s coming off a 24-day injury. He’s coming back to play. One of the conditions to get him on the court tonight is to hold him to a certain point in terms of minutes,” Daigneault said. “We actually discussed that situation with both him and [Hartenstein] Before the game. Just so we can all be clear, in a non-emotional moment, that if we were in that situation, this is what we would do.

“We obviously did that. I understand it’s a little unconventional, but, at the end of the day, we’re trying to prioritize the health of our players as they come back from injury.”

Mark Daigneault on SGA sitting out in OT: “He’s coming off a 24-day injury. Getting back to playing. One of the conditions to get him on the court tonight is to keep him at a certain point in terms of minutes.

“We actually discussed that situation with both him and [Hartenstein]” pic.twitter.com/WjoOQwiwO9

-Joshua Peacock (@Joe_Sway) 28 February 2026

Gilgeous-Alexander’s 36 points, nine assists, three rebounds, two blocks and two steals led to a 16-point comeback by the Thunder in the second half before the defending champions won in overtime without their reigning MVP.