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Jimmy Butler saw his night cut short, as he was ejected with 7:01 left in the fourth quarter of a tightly-contested game against the L.A. Clippers, one that would test the Philadelphia 76ers' toughness and mental fortitude after getting mollywopped by the Portland Trail Blazers right before the end of 2018.
Yet the four-time All-Star argued this was exactly the type of game Philly faithful were waiting to see.
“That’s what Philly likes to see,” Jimmy Butler said, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “That’s what the league is there for: the competitiveness. Obviously, nobody wants to see a fight. But I like the energy that it brings.”
Butler was tossed along with Clippers guard Avery Bradley, as the two got a little too physical down the stretch, enough for the officials to call it a day for both players. Things had gotten chippy as the Clippers shaved a 24-point halftime deficit, slowly chipping away at it.
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Teammate Joel Embiid got into it with Clippers' resident antagonist Patrick Beverley, as both received technical fouls with 9:32 left to play.
Things eventually boiled over as L.A. got overly aggressive when attempting to come back in the game, resulting in a shoving match between the 6-foot-7 Butler and the 6-foot-2 Bradley.
“We are playing physical,” Butler said. “We both want to win. Everybody on every team wants to win. Two people got too close to one another, and the same things happened. Some pushing and some shoving and we got techs and we got ejected.”
The win proved a pivotal one for the Sixers, who are hoping to come out of this five-game road trip with a winning record after Wednesday's tilt against the Phoenix Suns.
