Oklahoma City Thunder guard Josh Giddey almost lost it after New Orleans Pelicans swingman josh richardson hit him with a low blow during their Play-In game on Wednesday.
Midway through the fourth quarter as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was bringing down the ball to their side of the court, Giddey tried to keep Richardson away from his teammate. As the Aussie playmaker went face to face with the Pelicans vet, Richardson suddenly elbowed him to the groin area.
Of course Giddey fell to the floor, but he was able to get back up quickly. Obviously furious over what happened, he proceeded to run to fight Richardson. Fortunately, it didn’t escalate further as the Thunder was able to stop the point guard from doing something he’d probably regret.
Following the incident, the officials reviewed the play and hit Richardson with a Flagrant 1 foul.
Josh Richardson hits Josh Giddey below the belt, and Giddey tried to go after him 😳
Richardson was hit with a flagrant foul penalty 1.
pic.twitter.com/W9ge5mlSIT
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) April 13, 2023
That was definitely a dirty hit from Josh Richardson, though it’s not surprising to see considering how tight the game was between the two teams. Maybe Richardson was trying to get into the head of Josh Giddey since he has been really dominant in the contest?
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Or maybe Richardson wanted to show Giddey that he’s the better Josh–though all Thunder fans know the truth.
Whatever the case may be, the good thing is Richardson didn’t come out unscathed and was punished for his dirty act. Had the referees let it slide, it would have been more disappointing and would probably spark plenty of angry reactions from Oklahoma City fans.