The New York Knicks didn’t have their best night on Wednesday.
In the closing seconds of a 127-106 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, three players in total, including two on the Knicks, were ejected for an on-court shuffle.
The dust-up occurred with 49 seconds left in regulation when Jae Crowder stole the ball from the Knicks. With the Grizzlies up by 18 points, Crowder then ran over to attempt a 3-pointer from the corner. Payton took exception with the move and proceeded to shove Crowder following the shot attempt.
The two had to be separated and were each eventually tossed from the game. In addition to Payton and Crowder getting ejected, Marcus Morris also hit the showers early for his role in the incident.
The Knicks and Grizzlies had to be separated after Elfrid Payton’s hard foul on Jae Crowder late in the 4th. pic.twitter.com/t1YWR5Wxdt
— ESPN (@espn) January 30, 2020
Afterward, Morris offered a sexist comment toward Crowder, calling his behavior on the court very “woman-like.”
“He plays the game in a different way. A lot of female tendencies on the court,” Morris said. “Flopping and throwing his head back the entire game. It’s a man’s game and you just get tired of it. … His game is soft. He’s soft. It’s how he carries himself. It’s just very woman-like.”
"He's got a lot of female tendencies on the court, flopping and throwing his head back…he's soft, very woman-like"
– Marcus Morris on Jae Crowder pic.twitter.com/MxtFnKbu3M
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) January 30, 2020
Immediately following his comments, Morris offered an apology on Twitter, calling it a “heat of the moment response” and that he didn’t mean for women to feel as though he was disrespecting them with his statement with the media.
I apologize for using the term “female tendencies” I have the upmost respect for women and everything they mean to us. It was a Heat of the moment response and I never intended for any Women to feel as though in anyway I’m disrespecting them. Again I apologize with my comments.
— Marcus Morris (@MookMorris2) January 30, 2020
To make matters even worse, the Knicks were unable to provide the visiting Grizzlies with hot water or enough pressure to even take showers after the game at Madison Square Garden.
According to Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News, Grizzlies rookie Ja Morant said there was no water in the locker room and the water pressure was very low.
Ja Morant says there’s no hot water and only 3 drops of water coming out of the Knicks visitor showers.
“This is beyond me,” he said.
The Grizzlies are actively trying to get both hot water and water pressure to take showers right now.
— Kristian Winfield (@Krisplashed) January 30, 2020
Morant vowed to shower back at the team hotel following the game.
As for the game on the court, Morant led the Grizzlies with his eighth double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 assists. He became just the ninth rookie in NBA history to record two games with at least 10 assists and no turnovers.
The Knicks and Grizzlies play for the final time this season on April 1.
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