WATCH: Heat’s Caleb Martin tackles Raptors’ Christian Koloko into stands; both players ejected
Koloko #Koloko
The Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat are two of the toughest teams in the NBA, leading to some epic matchups, including a memorable triple-overtime game in January that the Raptors won. Because the teams both play so hard, however, occasionally tempers start to flare.
That’s what happened during Miami’s 112-109 home win over Toronto on Saturday, when a loose ball foul from Heat forward Caleb Martin led to a skirmish that spilled into the stands. Martin and rookie Raptors big man Christian Koloko got tangled up while going for a rebound, and it appeared that Koloko reached out to grab Martin as he fell to the floor.
Martin didn’t take that well, as he then stood over Koloko in an intimidating fashion. When Koloko got up off the floor and wrapped his arms around Martin, the Heat forward went right into a form tackle that landed both players in the first couple of rows of the stands. Multiple players from both teams followed the duo in what ended up being quite a scene.
After an official review, Martin was assessed a personal foul, while both he and Koloko received technical fouls and ejections. No other players were assessed penalties on the play.
Things like this tend to happen from time to time in the NBA, but this one was particularly scary because it spilled over into the stands. You never want to see fans put in danger due to players getting into an argument, and luckily it appears that nobody was injured in the scuffle.
We’ll wait to see if there’s any further discipline from the league for any players involved, including those who may have left the bench during the altercation.