Hawks Guard Suspended One Game For Elbowing New Orleans Pelicans' Bryce McGowens

While the New Orleans Pelicans enjoyed a relatively stress-free win over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night, there was a little bit of chaos when the two teams met at midcourt that ended in a suspension. It took a while to parse through everything that happened, but it eventually got cleared up.

Atlanta Hawks guard Kingston Flemings has now been suspended for one game for "intentionally elbowing" Pelicans wing Bryce McGowens, per ESPN's Shams Charania. That suspension could actually be deemed light by some, as there was speculation of a multi-game absence after reviewing footage of the event.

To start, really, one has to go back a few minutes in time. New Orleans had complete control of this game already, as they called a timeout with six minutes left, up 108-88. From there, three straight Pelicans hit a three on three straight possessions: Jeremiah Fears, Karlo Matkovic and Trey Murphy (an important note: McGowens got a steal off of Flemings in between these shots). 

Flemings went for a layup on the other end. On his way to the rim, he elbowed McGowens, but McGowens recovered and blocked it. Now, going back to the other side of the court, Flemings hit McGowens with an intentional elbow. New Orleans closed out this run with a Zion Williamson lob to Murphy, who screamed as Atlanta called a timeout.

As the Hawks called that timeout, McGowens stormed down the court in retaliation, but was met with a mix of a few players, officials and certainly Hawks forward Lu Dort. Soon, a ton of players from both sides were in the middle.

The Pelicans already had a ton of energy from playing some of their best basketball. As they went back to the bench, they pumped up the crowd, and the crowd obliged. It was a moment that Williamson was very happy about when asked about it after the game.

After the officials reviewed everything, Flemings was ejected and Pelicans two-way forward Julian Reese received a technical for his activity in the scuffle. The ejection was surprising in the moment, but it now makes perfect sense.

"The thing about our team is that we're not leaving anybody alone out there, and so it did happen. Nothing came about from it, but the ability to have each other's back in any moment is what's most important about this team," said Mosley after the game.

Mosley added that he had no problem with the Pelicans' involvement. In fact, he seemed proud and called the camaraderie that his team showed "very" satisfying. It's a testament to the early results of the culture he has put in place.

"We're not backing down from anybody," the coach said.