The Milwaukee Bucks came into Game 4 extremely shorthanded, as they would have to try and even their first round series with the Pacers without Giannis Antetokounmpo or Damian Lillard, as their two superstars both dealt with lower leg injuries.
That meant the Bucks were desperate for some big contributions from their supporting cast, and one of the players they figured to lean heavily on to pick up some of the slack offensively was Bobby Portis. In the first seven minutes of action, Portis had 4 points and 3 rebounds as he was active early, clearly getting the message that he’d be more involved. However, Portis always plays with an edge and late in the first quarter, he let his intensity get the best of him in a scuffle with Andrew Nembhard after the two got tangled up on a box out.
Portis & Nembhard exchanging shoves pic.twitter.com/W6ZDB9JXNE
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) April 28, 2024
Nembhard was hit with a technical for his part, while Portis was ejected for not only getting in the shoving match with Nembhard, but going a step further with the second grab/swing at the Pacers guard. The officials had already made it clear they wanted to keep the nonsense to a minimum in this game, handing out two early technicals to Pascal Siakam and Patrick Beverley for taunting, but Portis and Nembhard still got tangled and Portis left Milwaukee even more shorthanded by doing enough to get tossed.