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Former Knicks Ejected After Timberwolves, Pistons Fight

Former New York Knicks were removed from some extra curriculars in the Minnesota Timberwolves' tilt with the Detroit Pistons.
Geoff Maggliocchetti|
Mar 30, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) looks on during the first quarter against the Detroit Pistons at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
Mar 30, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) looks on during the first quarter against the Detroit Pistons at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

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New York Knicks

Those asking the New York Knicks to show a little fight at this point in the season probably should've been more specific.

To their credit, the modern Knicks have fared decently well, having won four of their last five as they continue to navigate through the loss of backcourt stars like Jalen Brunson. Former New Yorkers Donte DiVincenzo and Pablo Prigioni, however, might've taken things a bit too literally in the Minnesota Timberwolves' latest tilt.

DiVincenzo and Prigioni were ejected after engaging the Detroit Pistons in extra curriculars in a weekend-closing interconfernce showdown. The incident occurred in the second period when Detroit's Ron Holland was called for fouling Naz Reid on a drive.

With tensions simmering over the past few prior possessions, DiVincenzo, the one-year Knicks who set the single-season record for successful three-points in 2023-24, inserted himself into the ensuing argument between Holland and Reid and wound up shoving the latter, triggering a lack of pleasantries that eventually made their way into the seating areas behind the basket.

Seven were eventually ejected by the time order was restored, including DiVincenzo, Reid, and Holland. Prigioni was likewise ousted alongside Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff after the two exchanged heated words in the immediate aftermath.

“There were things said by their assistant coach. I am in the same boat as my guys are in. We are going to defend each other," Bickerstaff said of the involvement of Prigioni, who spent most of his NBA career with the Knicks (h/t Coty Davis of Detroit News). "I'm not going to let people say belligerent things about my guys. He said what he said, he knows what he said. I didn't think it crossed the line to escalation of anything, but, in that moment, I understand the refs' position. You just can't say anything to people or about people and expect it to be okay."

Minnesota won the game 123-104.

Any suspensions that stem from the fracas could have significant implications on the playoff picture on each side: Detroit (42-33) could well face the Knicks in a first-round postseason set, as they're currently sandwiched in an Eastern Conference logjam by Indiana and Milwaukee. The situation is more dire for Minnesota (43-32), which enters the week a half-game behind Golden State for the sixth and final automatic playoff spot in the West.

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Geoff Magliocchetti
GEOFF MAGGLIOCCHETTI

Geoff Magliocchetti is a veteran sportswriter who contributes to a variety of sites on the "On SI" network. In addition to the Yankees/Mets, Geoff also covers the New York Knicks, New York Liberty, and New York Giants and has previously written about the New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Staten Island Yankees, and NASCAR.

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