Carmelo Anthony gave his two cents on the massive LeBron James-Isaiah Stewart altercation, and revealed how it was much required for the Lakers to “spark their fire”.
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No one could’ve expected a Los Angeles Lakers–Detroit Pistons matchup to have so much drama as it had tonight. In a game that saw players bleeding, tempers flaring, grown men getting into brawls, and getting tossed out of the game, LeBron James and Isaiah Stewart made headlines for the wrong reasons.
Early in the third quarter, Stewart and Bron got into a little scuffle to enter the paint as Jerami Grant shot his 2nd free throw. LBJ swung his arms around to get free from Isaiah, and in the process, landed a solid jab to the 20-year-old’s face. Stewart fell back and blood gushed out of his face, as he got into an altercation with the King.
Also Read: Lakers’ Anthony Davis describes what went down during the scuffle
What happened next was a massive brawl at the Little Caesars Arena with the Pistons’ players and staff trying to cool Isaiah down, and the Lakers’ players trying to save their MVP from an angry young 250-pound boy.
“It’s unfortunate what happened, but we need something like that to spark our fire”: Carmelo Anthony on the LeBron James-Isaiah Stewart altercation
The Lakers continue their 3rd quarter woos, getting outscored 31-23. However, it was an absolutely terrific final-period performance by LAL, led by Russ, AD, and Melo. From trailing by 15 to outscoring the Pistons by 20 in the last quarter, it was the Lakers who grabbed the much-needed 121-116 win.
During the postgame interview, Carmelo Anthony explained how the Purple & Gold needed the altercation to “spark their fire”. Calling it a “battle”, Melo spoke about the incident:
“In the midst of that battle – or whatever you want to call it. In the midst of the storm, it’s just a matter of keeping everybody composed,” said the Lakers veteran. “We could’ve easily let the game slip away. But as a team we needed to come together at that moment.”
“It’s unfortunate about what happened, but we needed something like that to spark our fire. We haven’t had anything like that to test us from a physical standpoint. Although like I said, it’s unfortunate what happened but we needed that to spark something – and it did.”
LeBron James and co. have now snapped their 3-game losing streak. With a subpar .500 9-9 record, the LA-based team is now placed 8th in the West. James and Stewart will meet again next week at the Staples Center, on 28th November. It surely will be a clash you wouldn’t want to miss.
