Saturday night, the OKC Thunder managed to pull away victorious over the Houston Rockets in what proved to be a defensive masterclass of an NBA Cup Semifinals.
Of course, as is generally the case with any defensive battle, tensions ultimately rose between these two rival clubs, particularly late in the fourth period when big man Alperen Sengun shoved point guard Cason Wallace in the back on a fight for a rebound, resulting in a face-to-face altercation.
After being separated by their respective teams, both players would receive technical fouls for their roles in the on-court skirmish.
Though the scrum may have quickly dissolved and came at a time when the Thunder virtually had their NBA Cup Final berth locked (led by 13 with 40.4 seconds remaining), it was certainly something that caught the attention of both fans, pundits, and even players, with Isaiah Hartenstein going out of his way to show support for his sophomore teammate postgame.
Thunder big Isaiah Hartenstein hypes up Cason Wallace after scrum
When talking to reporters back in the locker room following their 111-96 win over Houston, the Thunder center was outwardly hyped up when asked about his thoughts on the technical call on Wallace.
"I loved it. My son getting into it. I already got his fine so that’s all good. I loved it. That’s been Caso all year," Hartenstein said.
Hartenstein may have been the first to offer financial restitution for Wallace's seemingly celebrated actions, but he was far from the only Thunder player who was amped up about the in-game tussle, as Wallace himself went as far as to call out Sengun for trying to rattle his feathers, saying "we're not gonna get punked.”
A very simple, but straight-to-the-point answer from the second-year baller, and this sentiment was evident on the court when the entire team came to his defense during the game.
Even the oft-quiet Luguentz Dort chimed in on the situation, albeit with a rather simple retort hinting at the same thing as Wallace while throwing a few subtle jabs in along the way.
“We just play the right way. We don’t really talk to other people. We don't do anything after games. We don’t go on live or do stuff like that. We just respect the game. Every time we go out there we compete, try to win, we dap up and then we out,” Dort said.
The comment about going live is in reference to Houston player Tari Eason, who literally went live on social media after the Thunders lost to the Rockets earlier in the month.
This shows that even though many consider the Thunder to be childish and immature due to post-game interview antics (something they displayed at full strength Saturday), they view themselves as a mature team that knows how to take care of business.
This is surely the start of a heated rivalry out in the Western Conference, and it seems the Thunder are ready to take this challenge head-on.