Tensions reached a breaking point on Sunday afternoon as a second-quarter altercation between the Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves escalated into a full-on fracas, resulting in seven ejections—five players and two coaches.
With Detroit holding a nine-point lead in the second quarter, emotions ignited following a pair of physical plays in quick succession. Pistons center Isaiah Stewart, who had already drawn a technical foul moments earlier for aggressively bumping Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo after the whistle, remained at the center of the storm.
Detroit Pistons
Chaos Unfolds on the Court
The tipping point came when Detroit’s Ron Holland II swiped the ball out of Timberwolves forward Naz Reid’s hands along the baseline. What seemed like a routine foul quickly escalated into a heated exchange. DiVincenzo inserted himself into the confrontation by grabbing Holland’s jersey, triggering an all-out scuffle that brought both benches, coaching staffs, and training personnel onto the court.
Referees and team officials worked to separate the chaos, but the damage had already been done.
Fallout from the Fracas
Once the dust settled, officials handed out ejections to Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, Stewart, Holland II, and guard Marcus Sasser. On the Timberwolves’ side, Reid and DiVincenzo were ejected, along with assistant coach Pablo Prigioni. The scene even featured a shouting match between Bickerstaff and Prigioni, requiring intervention from staff members to pull them apart.
A fight breaks out between the Pistons and Timberwolves
Donte DiVincenzo, Naz Reid, Ron Holland, Isaiah Stewart, Marcus Sasser, Pistons HC J. B. Bickerstaff and Wolves assistant coach Pablo Prigioni were all ejected pic.twitter.com/TJA3OczOxB
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 31, 2025
It was an ugly moment in what had been a relatively competitive game. Both teams will now await potential additional discipline from the league office in the coming days.