We’re not sure why Ricky Rubio has become a marked man in the NBA.
The Utah Jazz guard received two cheap shots Thursday night during his team’s 116-88 win over the Phoenix Suns, and the incidents led to a near brawl between the teams. The fracas happened in the third quarter after Phoenix’s Marquese Chriss missed a dunk and looked for a foul, only for the referee to deny his appeal.
That’s Phoenix’s Jared Dudley exacted his own form of justice against Rubio, whose only crime was trying to bring the ball up the court, and Chriss followed suit as the Jazz guard tried to stand up for himself.
Referees issued technical fouls against Dudley and Chriss and ejected both. Utah’s Donovan Mitchell and Joe Ingles received technical fouls for their roles in the scuffle.
This was the second time in recent weeks Rubio has been on the receiving end of a cheap shot, with the other coming March 3 at the hands of Minnesota Timberwolves guard Jeff Teague. Rubio’s Jazz won that game, too, so we only can conclude Utah’s victories irk opponents in a special way.
