After a scuffle with Chicago Bulls center Robin Lopez that led to a double ejection, Toronto Raptors forward Serge Ibaka said he was only trying to defend himself when he punched Lopez in the face on Tuesday.
Serge Ibaka on fight with Robin Lopez: ‘I had to defend myself.’
Ibaka said he had to protect himself like a man.
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
“Like a man, I had to defend myself,” Ibaka said, via the Raptors. “I’m not just gonna be out there and watch a man hit me and just walk away. I had to defend myself so that’s what happened.
“You never know, things happen. I was just ready to protect myself. He threw the first punch. I had to do something.”
UPDATE: The NBA suspended Lopez and Ibaka one game for their altercation.
During a dead ball in the third quarter of the Raptors’ 122-120 overtime win over the Bulls, Ibaka elbowed Lopez in the back. Lopez then swiped at Ibaka’s arm while he held the ball.
The two then got into a shoving match, with multiple players and officials coming to restrain them from each other. Lopez then threw a punch at Ibaka before the Raptors big man retaliated with a lanky jab of his own.
Both Lopez and Ibaka were ejected immediately.
“What happened was we were playing physical basketball and he got frustrated,” Ibaka told reporters after the game. “He kind of bumped me, I kind of bumped him a little bit. Then he got mad and slapped the ball out of my hands. Then we started talking [trash] and then he punched me.”
Ibaka, who the Raptors acquired near the trade deadline, said it was frustrating to have to watch the remainder of the game from the locker room. Toronto trailed by double digits at the time of the fight but rallied back to force overtime and win by two.
The Raptors forward, who said he did not start the fight, said he hopes the NBA can help diffuse those altercations before they get physical.
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