Who fought with Austin Rivers?

Mo Bamba was drafted by the Orlando Magic as the 6th pick in the 1st round of the 2018 NBA draft. He played for the Magic until 2023 before getting traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in the middle of the last season(2022-23). Currently he is playing for the Philadelphia 76ers and is their backup center.

So far in his career, Bamba has not yet established himself in the NBA. After going as high as the 6th overall pick and a ton of pre-season hype, his averages are extremely low. Bamba’s best season so far was the 2021-2022 season where he averaged 10.6 points on 48.0 percent shooting from the field. He can shoot the ball from inside and outside but is highly inconsistent with his jumper. He can become a great force in the NBA if Bamba could develop a more consistent jumpshot.

Bamba is more known for a song that was dedicated to him. The song is called “Mo Bamba,” and was sung by rapper Sheck Wes. The music video has over 400 million views and was a hit when it first came out.

Bamba is far from an ideal center. He can block a lot of shots but can sometimes get too excited and rack up a lot of fouls. Bamba can space the floor but lacks consistency. He can get double-doubles in minimum minutes but is still a very raw talent. The good thing is that Bamba is just 25 years of age and has a lot of time to fix all his issues.

Limited minutes has led to a lot of difficulty for growth, as he is only playing 3.0 minutes per game with the 76ers. With proper utilization, Bamba could be a decent role playing center who can shoot the three and protect the paint.

Mo Bamba’s Fight

On 4th February, 2023, the Orlando Magic were playing the Minnesota Timberwolves and out of nowhere, a huge fight broke out between Austin Rivers and Bamba. The Timberwolves were down 10 points at almost the end of the third quarter when Rivers approached the Magic bench alone and Bamba tried to throw a punch on him.

5 players were ejected from that game and they were Mo Bamba and Jalen Suggs from the Magic’s squad. Austin Rivers, Jaden McDaniels and Taurean Prince from the Timberwolves. The game ended in Orlando’s favor.

The fight started when Rivers missed a three-point attempt in front of the Orlando Magic’s bench. Mo Bamba and Markelle Fultz particularly, reacted to the missed attempt. They were openly mocking him and Rivers decided to confront Bamba about it. This ended in a huge brawl and multiple ejections.

Mo Bamba’s Suspension

Bamba was suspended for four games due to his quarrel with Rivers. Meanwhile for Rivers, he was banned for three games. The suspensions were handed out the day after the on-court fight that took place between multiple players. A total of five players were ejected that night.

After the game, Rivers commented on the scuffle to the reporters and said “I'm not going to snitch on the dude or whatever, but I just didn't like the way he was talking to me.” The former Timberwolves player continued, “For no reason, too. I don't even know that dude. I don't know anything about him. Obviously, I just know he's a player for the Magic. And he proceeded to talk, so that next possession, when I went down there, I just said, pretty much, 'Just keep it respectful, bro.”