In the second quarter of Sunday’s Game Four matchup against the Denver Nuggets, Nikola Jokic was at the sideline chasing down a loose ball. The ball ended up in the second row, where Ishbia was sitting. Cameras show Ishbia put his hands on Jokic, where the two-time former MVP brushed him off with a casual elbow.
Ishbia did a better acting job to stir up drama than Kevin Durant might have in his whole career, outside of his split with Russell Westbrook in Oklahoma City all those many years ago.
Jokic received a technical foul, while it was clear that he was calling for the ball to be returned among the fracas. While Ishbia was holding onto the ball, Jokic raced over in an attempt to get a quick inbound for the Nuggets to get up the floor. Ishbia would not release the ball, while being evident it was from the much larger Jokic.
Phoenix held serve on their home floor in the 129-124 win, guaranteeing there will be a Game Six back at Footprint Center later this week. Game Five shifts back to Denver, with the series tied 2-2. Remember that Denver has only made three conference finals in franchise history, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in all three. Should the Lakers maintain their trajectory, it should be LeBron against Jokic for the right to represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals next month.
Ishbia took to Twitter stating:
“Suspending or fining anyone over last night’s incident would not be right. I have a lot of respect for Jokic and don’t want to see anything like that.”
Instead of holding onto the ball like it was a puck or foul ball, Ishbia should have known to immediately toss it to the first approaching player, coach or official. A player would have to return the ball to the official for play to resume anyway. It would come as no surprise that Ishbia would be linked to a rival organization with controversy. His own Wikipedia biography states that after succeeding his father Jeff in 1986 as the CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, Ishbia indicated his company would no longer associate with any banks that had ties to rival Rocket Mortgage.
The CEO of Rocket Mortgage happens to be Cleveland Cavaliers’ majority owner Dan Gilbert. On a side note, condolences go out of Gilbert and his family, after the passing of their son Nick on Saturday. Nick was 26, after a long battle with neurofibromatosis, but was present at most of the NBA Draft Lotteries the Cavaliers were involved in, bringing home the top overall pick twice.
Lines and boundaries between fans and players get thinner and thinner every year. Fans want to be closer to the game, but teams also need to ensure the safety of spectators from very large individuals, especially when play approaches the seats. The NHL has glass around the dasher boards, while MLB recently extended the protective netting further down the first and third base lines. The fans at NFL games are far enough back to where players only have direct contact after jumping into the stands after a touchdown.
Jokic should not be suspended, and Ishbia should pay any fine, despite it was not his player affected. Mark Cuban was once fined $25,000 for comments against J.R. Smith, who was a member of the Nuggets. Cuban most often ends up paying fines for criticizing officials, which he matches by charitable donations.
Ishbia is new to the fraternity of owners, but has to quickly learn that sitting courtside for the team that he owns does not give him the same rights as the players on his payroll.
-JC24