November 2021. The Nuggets host the Heat and Nikola Jokic launches a counterattack. Markieff Morris stops the pivot in the middle of the field by making a mistake, a little supported with a blow to the Serbian’s ribs. The latter then reacted violently by pushing the Miami player in the back.
Tension will rise and ultimately, Marcus’ brother will miss several months of competition following this incident. But he now says that his absence was mainly a precautionary measure on the part of the Florida franchise.
“It was a low blow, that’s what we call it in the neighborhood,” comments Markieff Morris on the podcast All The Smoke. “It was a hard blow, like whiplash. But for a guy who weighs 160 kilos (129 in reality) and takes you by surprise, it didn’t do much for me. It was more the Heat who wanted to protect me. I was allowed to play two weeks later but they held me back. He made this bad move, but he will have the right to his own. »
How did Marcus experience this painful moment for his brother? “I was obviously angry, but especially because he turned his back on Jokic. He never should have. » Markieff Morris, who then insulted Jokic as a “fat guy”, then justified himself by explaining that he was on a basketball court and not in the street where, there, he would not have turned his back on someone one in this situation.
Austin Rivers paid for Nikola Jokic
While obviously waiting to take revenge for this bad move (not sure that the NBA appreciates this statement…), the Morris brothers tried to take justice into their own hands. Marcus in this case, during the match between the Nuggets and the Clippers. Without success and it is another who took for the double MVP of the league.
“When we played Denver, the Nuggets were on my back, they knew I wanted to do something,” remembers Markieff’s brother. “Every step I took, they watched me. So I told myself that if I couldn’t have Jokic, I would have one of his teammates. It was Austin Rivers. »
The two men actually had a small clash during the meeting played in January 2022, but nothing similar to the one between Markieff and Jokic a few weeks earlier.
