A Miss All-In brawl between the Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves quickly went downhill on Sunday, spilling into the stands of Minneapolis' target center, draining seven players and coaches.
Detroit lost head coach JB Vickerstaff, center Isaiah Stewart, forward Ron Holland II and guard Marcus Sasser after the brawl.
Minnesota forward Nazreed and guard Don Teddy Vincenzo were also threw along with assistant coach Pablo Prigioni.
“Obviously things went too far,” confessed Vickerstaff, who was disciplined after the match. “But what you're looking for each other, people trying to protect each other, people trying to bring their backs in. … They can't be negotiated in our locker room.”
Chaos exploded early in the second quarter when Minnesota's Naz Reid took the exception to hitting Detroit's Ron Holland as he drove towards the basket.
Reed angrily jabed his fingers in the Netherlands as two players squared after the incident. It escalated rapidly, and players on both sides were sucked into a brawl that spilled into the courtside gallery of AFP Report.
Wolf Donte Divinsenzo was in the thickness of the fuss, rolling back into his seat as the scrums of players and team officials worked around him.
The long-term scrap lasted about a minute before the temper cooled down, and the host crew began to decide who was at fault.
Minnesota head coach Chris Finch later proposed that Detroit's overly physical approach had caused a flashpoint early in the game.
Asked for an opinion on the case, Finch replied.
The Detroit Pistons advance to the left of Ronald Holland II (00), and the Minnesota Timber Wolves defend Minnesota Timber Wolves guard Don Teddy Vincento in the first half of the NBA basketball game in Minneapolis on March 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
“Then obviously it escalated and continued to escalate mainly from their side to be honest with you.
“I thought the game was too physical. It was a bit biased towards that physicality, so I thought I was tied to what it would happen, and it felt like it would come.
“We knew they were a super-physical team. They hit you and hugged you…but I thought it had reached the point where players would take matters into their own hands, and you don't want that.”
The game has featured the most technical fouls in each NBA game, each OptaStats, since March 23, 2005.
As for the actual sports contest itself, the Timberwolves gathered from a 16-point early deficit, defeating Piston 123-104.
