The shoves started like so many midseason skirmishes do: a hard screen, a smaller guard trying to wriggle through it, a big man holding his ground, and a whistle that felt like a spark dropped into gasoline.
Late in the third quarter Saturday night in New Orleans, Pelicans pest Jose Alvarado barreled into Suns center Mark Williams while fighting over a ball screen designed to free up Phoenix guard Collin Gillespie, who had been scorching early. Alvarado’s push drew the foul. Williams, 7-foot-1 and already a problem on the glass, responded with a shove to Alvarado’s back. Words followed. Then grips. Then right hands. Alvarado landed a punch before teammates and officials separated them, and both players were ejected as the Suns went on to complete a two-game road sweep with a 123–114 win.
JOSE ALVARADO VS MARK WILLIAMS
FEATHER WEIGHT VS HEAVY WEIGHT BOUT pic.twitter.com/2H80S9mB42
— Pelicans Film Room (@PelsFilmRoom) December 28, 2025
It was the kind of flashpoint that looks sudden on the broadcast and inevitable in hindsight, two teams playing the same opponent on consecutive nights, the temperature rising possession by possession as adjustments get sharper and patience gets thinner. Phoenix coach Jordan Ott said he hadn’t reviewed the video afterward, but he framed the moment as a byproduct of the schedule as much as the personalities involved.
“I saw it start, and then all of a sudden everyone jumped in,” Ott said. “Obviously, it happens. It just feels like the lack of sleep, the second night of a back-to-back, something always tends to happen… They got tangled up, and obviously, they both got thrown out.”
The brawl also arrived at a precarious point in the game. New Orleans had been making its push, trimming the margin and dragging Phoenix into a more physical, half-court grind. Williams’ minutes mattered because he’d been flipping possessions with extra chances, an offensive-rebounding menace who, before the ejection, had 10 points and eight rebounds off the bench.
By removing him, Alvarado effectively traded his own havoc for Phoenix’s interior muscle, turning the contest back into something closer to skill and spacing than bruises and second-chance points.
That’s the complicated part of Alvarado’s role in the league. He’s not just a defender; he’s an irritant by design, the kind of guard who makes stars exhale sharply and big men look down to find where the contact came from. That style wins minutes, changes games, and, when the line is crossed, invites consequences. In this case, neither Alvarado nor Williams spoke to reporters after the game.
