All hell broke loose in the fourth quarter of the Miami Heat's Friday night battle against the New Orleans Pelicans. The Pelicans took exception to Kevin Love's hard foul on Zion Williamson, which led to some fisticuffs between Jimmy Butler and Naji Marshall. While that scuffle between Butler and Marshall ended up being the center of the altercation, a secondary fistfight broke out between Thomas Bryant and Jose Alvarado ā€” and that may have been more violent than everything that transpired in what was a wild sequence.

One fan, in particular, had a front row seat to the exchange of blows between Bryant and Alvarado. The rule prohibiting bench players from entering the court during altercations made sure that the Heat and Pelicans role players stayed on the sideline during their fight, which gave fans a close vantage point of the proceedings.

Of course, referees ended up ejecting Thomas Bryant and Jose Alvarado from the game in addition to the early exits from Jimmy Butler and Naji Marshall. Further punishment awaits these Heat and Pelicans players; Bryant and Alvarado, especially, should garner a multiple-game suspension from the league after the two clearly went swinging at each other in the heat of the moment.

It's not quite clear yet how the tension between Bryant and Alvarado broke to the point that they felt the urge to come to blows. But it's clear that these outbursts have no place in the NBA, especially when they're at very close proximity to fans. The last thing the NBA needs is another Malice at the Palace situation.

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Fans have seen some wild violent outbursts this season. In addition to the fight between the Heat and the Pelicans, Detroit Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart lashed out at Phoenix Suns center Drew Eubanks on February. Meanwhile, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green has been at the center of controversy aplenty, with the last straw being his clubbing swing towards Jusuf Nurkic which netted him an indefinite suspension.

Nonetheless, in the end, the Heat appeared to be galvanized in the aftermath of the altercation, claiming the win over the Pelicans, 106-95.