The Memphis Grizzlies have been in the headlines recently for firing head coach Taylor Jenkins, but just days before, it was for another eyebrow-raising incident. Desmond Bane had shoved Santi Aldama during the game against the Utah Jazz on March 25, and the duo finally spoke about the incident after the 134-127 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.
“Two competitors,” Bane said, via Commercial Appeal. “We’re scratching and clawing against a Utah team on the road. We’re trying to push each other to be better. And that was pretty much that. I probably took it too far. I love Santi. He was in my wedding, I’ll be in his wedding. We talked right on the bench right after, hugged it out in the locker room, and everything’s great.”
Bane did take it too far. He shoved Aldama so hard that the big man fell into his seat. You can understand someone being frustrated during a game, but you don’t shove your own teammate over a disagreement. Bane stated, though, they had put the incident behind them, and Aldama said the same.
“Little disagreement,” Aldama said. “Definitely not a good look. Not going to sit here and act like it’s nothing, but we talked about it . . . It would be worse if we had a bunch of guys that just sat down, twiddled their thumbs and just acted like they were just fine with the situation. We want to win. We’re competitive. We just said what we said and then moved on.”
Sure, you wouldn’t want your teammates to just sit emotionlessly on the bench during a difficult stretch, but you’d also want them to control their temper. These two kept jawing at each other after the shove, and their teammates had to step in to defuse the situation.
The frustration for Bane in that game against the Jazz stemmed from the Grizzlies’ slow start. They were down by as many as 14 points in the first half against a team that had lost 12 of its last 13 games entering that contest. That was unacceptable, and his frustrations boiled over. The Athletic reported what Bane and Aldama said to each other during that exchange.
Desmond Bane: “Are you gonna f***ing guard anybody?”
Santi Aldama: “F*** you.”
Bane: “No, f*** you. Play harder.”
The Jazz were rolling on offense at the start of this game, and Bane wanted Aldama to get his act together defensively. The big man didn’t take too kindly to being called out, and one thing led to another. Aldama now hopes that the incident provided a jolt to the team.
“Just got to find a way to win games now,” Aldama added. “If that’s a wake-up call, then so be it.”
The Grizzlies did go on to blow out the Jazz 140-103, but that’s their only win in their last six games. The loss to the Lakers dropped them to 44-30 this season, and they’re now in real danger of finishing outside the top six in the West. The Grizzlies need to turn things around in a hurry, and they’re in action next against the Boston Celtics at FedEx Forum on Monday at 7:30 PM ET.
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