Newly-minted Suns owner Mat Ishbia is known for his competitive nature as a businessman, but in Game 4 of his team's playoff series with the Nuggets, that competitive nature got him into an altercation with Denver's best player.
In the latest Western Conference Semifinal matchup between the Nuggets and Suns, a run-in between Ishbia and Nikola Jokic resulted in the two-time MVP being assessed a technical foul.
As the first half wound down, a loose ball made its way toward Ishbia, who was seated courtside. As Jokic looked to get the ball to push in transition, Ishbia was reluctant to let it go, resulting in Jokic attempting to rip the ball from Ishbia's hands.
After the ball flew into the hands of a fan seated a few rows back, Jokic nudged Ishbia, who may or may not have embellished the contact with something of a flop back into his chair.
lmao Jokic ripped the ball from the Suns owner pic.twitter.com/9vMkhyn0Um
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) May 8, 2023
Security for both the Nuggets and Suns came in to de-escalate the situation, and Jokic was eventually given a technical foul. It is unclear whether he was aware that his run-in was with the owner of the franchise.
During the struggle for possession of the basketball, another fan was spotted striking Jokic on the arm. For his actions, the fan was ejected from the arena and is subject to further discipline.
ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk asked Ishbia for his account of the minor incident, but Ishbia declined to comment.
Asked Mat Ishbia what happened with Jokic. Ishbia said he didn’t want to talk about what happened. https://t.co/zYP9NIW2XZ
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) May 8, 2023
Who is Mat Ishbia?
Ishbia is the chairman and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, a mortgage lender based in Michigan that was founded by his father, Jeff, in 1986.
Ishbia became the majority owner of the Suns in December 2022 when he purchased the team from Robert Sarver in a deal worth over $4 billion. It is the largest sale in league history.
Ishbia played basketball while at Michigan State and was part of the men's team that won the 2000 NCAA Tournament. A non-scholarship player for the Spartans, he appeared in 48 games over three seasons, posting averages of 0.6 points and 0.3 rebounds in 2.4 minutes.
According to Forbes, Ishbia has a net worth of $7 billion.
