Alvarado and Williams Suspended After Heated Pelicans Suns Scuffle

The NBA suspended New Orleans guard Jose Alvarado two games and Phoenix center Mark Williams one after a Saturday scuffle sparked by a pick. Both threw elbows and punches and were ejected as Phoenix won 123 114. Coach Jordan Ott said "They got tangled up, and obviously, they both got thrown out." The clash came the second night of a back to back, amid New Orleans 8 25 slide toward the lottery while Phoenix sits 18 13. Merlin sees the shove as a symptom, not the whole story. New Orleans is fraying under pressure and roster uncertainty while Phoenix is finding unlikely cohesion after moving on from Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal. Small eruptions like this show which clubs have steam to burn and which are running low.