Paul George sees it as a sign of competitiveness but when one talks about the history between the Indiana Pacers and the Detroit Pistons, things aren't that sweet as far as their rivalry is concerned.
He may have overlooked the fact that both teams figured in an ugly brawl back in 2004. At that time, the protagonists were Ben Wallace and Ron Artest, something that went out of control and involved the fans.
Thankfully, this incident happened at Indianapolis and not in Detroit.
Detroit was hit hard by that fracas, something that saw players like Artest and Stephen Jackson trade shots with National Basketball Association (NBA) fans.
With the game beyond reach and the Pacers well on their way to victory, George was criticized on why he still had to go for a steal on Reggie Jackson who was simply bringing up the ball to their frontcourt with no intention other than to wind down the game clock.
His attempt, of course, was futile and Marcus Morris boxed him out without malice if the video is to be a basis.
Rather than move on, George got in the face of Morris. Morris stood his ground and retaliated by shoving George that almost sparked another infamous melee had cooler heads not prevailed.
That triggered both teams to empty their benches which thankfully did not get out of control. But the incident was obviously something the NBA would not take lightly. The final score for that match was 97–82 in favor of the Pacers.
Morris was fined $15,000 for initially shoving George, while the Pacers forward drew another $10,000 fine for retaliating, per reports from ESPN.
This marks the third time that George has been fined by the NBA since October. He drew fines previously for publicly berating officials. To date, he has amassed a total of $68,000 in NBA fines.
