Kristaps Porzingis was in the middle of two altercations late in the Boston Celtics’ game against the Orlando Magic on Monday. The Latvian had a heated argument and confrontation against Magic guard Jalen Suggs before Orlando center Goga Bitadze intervened. Bitadze earned the ire of Porzingis after the big man put his hand around Boston’s lanky center.
The Porzingis-Suggs confrontation quickly became the Porzingis-Bitadze skirmish. Suggs, now the pacifist, desperately tried to push the former Washington Wizards star from his teammate. Referees and the coaching staff from both teams quickly entered the court to prevent things from escalating.
After referees reviewed the incident, Kristaps Porzingis and Jalen Suggs received technical fouls. Goga Bitadze, who seemingly mocked the Latvian, realized he had been ejected from the game.
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The Orlando Magic dragged the Boston Celtics to a physical game on both ends of the floor. Without Paolo Banchero, Mo Wagner and Franz Wagner, the hosts turned it into a defensive slugfest. The ploy worked as after a fiery start, the defending champs’ offense stuttered.
When the referees sent Goga Bitadze to the locker room, the Magic held a 103-93 lead. Despite Porzingis remaining in the game, the Celtics could not turn the game around and lost 108-104.
Basketball fans react to Kristaps Porzingis’ altercation against two Orlando Magic players
The altercation between Kristaps Porzingis and Goga Bitadze created a stir on social media. Basketball fans promptly reacted to the sequence:
“Goga officially on my hate list bros weird”
Another fan said:
“Why go for the neck?”
Another fan commented:
“You don’t walk up to a man and put your hand around his neck to push him away.”
@joeybblock added:
“What a weirdo”
@gracewein continued:
“idk what’s wrong with me that i think this is soooo funny. joe is gonna love this”
The testy game between the Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics on Monday was the first of three encounters. Kristaps Porzingis will see Goga Bitadze and Jalen Suggs again in the rematch on Jan. 17. Fans already expressed in the comments that they can't wait for the next Magic-Celtics game.
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