If you listed the players most likely to be kicked out of a game, whether due to technical fouls or physical altercations, Markieff Morris and DeMarcus Cousins would be at the top of the list. They showed why on Sunday, when the two were ejected from the Los Angeles Lakers clash with the Houston Rockets.
The problems started towards the end of the first quarter, when Morris knocked Jae’Sean Tate off the ball. Cousins, who was standing there, responded with a shiver in his forearm that sent Morris to the floor. Unsurprisingly, Morris was not very satisfied with this, so he jumped up and returned to Cousins with a shove.
After that, there were a lot of complaints and Morris had to be contained before he was finally calmed down by Montrezl Harrell and LeBron James. The referees went to the monitor to review the situation and determined that Morris and Cousins would be hit with a technical foul. Morris also received a flagrant 1 and was expelled.
Although Cousins was at stake after that incident, it didn’t last long. At the start of the second quarter, LeBron was heading for the basket and Cousins hit the ball hard, but the only thing he hit was LeBron’s head. The referees again went to the monitor and determined that it was a flagrant foul 2 because of the wind and contact with the head, and Cousins was expelled.
Morris and Cousins will eventually be fined, but it remains to be seen whether it will be a significant amount in addition to the normal value that techniques and blatant costs players. It is unlikely, however, that any of them will be suspended.