Saturday’s game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Washington Wizards erupted into fireworks as tensions flared and a fight broke out between the two teams that eventually involved Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell and Wizards wing Justin Champagnie.
Both players were ultimately ejected from the game, and on Sunday, the NBA handed down one-game suspensions to both Ajay Mitchell and Justin Champagnie for their role in the fight, as per Shams Charania from ESPN. Following the game. Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault acknowledged that he disagreed with the officials’ handling of the situation.
The altercation between the Thunder and the Wizards did not involve Mitchell and Champagnie originally. The incident began when Champagnie was seemingly in the way of Thunder big man Jaylin Williams inbounding the ball after a made basket.
The pair refused to get out of each other’s way, which led to a stare down and little pushing and shoving. That’s when the officials and teammates rushed over to break up the situation, but it instead only escalated from there. That was when Mitchell confronted Champagnie, resulting in Champagnie shoving his face. The altercation spilled into the courtside seats after that.
Williams and Thunder teammate Cason Wallace were also ejected from the game alongside Mitchell and Champagnie, but neither of them received any further punishment from the NBA.
The Thunder would end up winning the game, defeating the Wizards by a final score of 132-111. Mitchell will now miss the Thunder’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday, while Champagnie will miss the Wizards’ Sunday game against the New York Knicks.
