Jarred Vanderbilt put his finger in Jeremy Sochan’s face on Wednesday night, and the action almost resulted in the Lakers and Spurs getting into a melee.
The altercation occurred just seconds after Los Angeles lost to San Antonio, 107-91, at Frost Bank Center in Texas.
Vanderbilt approached Sochan following the game’s final whistle, and after he got just inches away from the Spurs forward’s face, the two appeared to exchange words.
San Antonio guard De’Aaron Fox got in between the guys and tried to separate them before things escalated, but as Vanderbilt was being ushered away, he poked Sochan near the mouth with force.
Spurs forward Julian Champagnie then shoved Vanderbilt, and players from both squads raced toward the scene.
Cooler heads prevailed, and all parties went to their respective locker rooms.
Vanderbilt did not speak with reporters about the ordeal afterward, but Sochan did, and he seemed to make light of it all.
“I must’ve said something to him during the game, and maybe it wasn’t very nice,” Sochan said with a smile. “He must have taken it in the wrong way and, you know, told me to see him after the game. So, I did. And we just had a polite exchange.
“I was, I think, intact and very joyful and, you know, the other person wasn’t. Yeah, he just wasn’t emotionally stable in that moment. So, it’s something he has to work on. And it’s just life.”
Vanderbilt played 18 minutes in the game, scoring four points on 2-of-6 shooting. Sochan logged six points in 11 minutes.
The Lakers — playing without LeBron James — had their three-game winning streak snapped by the defeat despite triple-double from Luka Doncic. They play next on Friday at home against the Bucks.
