In the fourth quarter of the Grizzlies’ Game 4 loss to the Spurs, Memphis coach Lionel Hollins pushed Jerryd Bayless near the Grizzlies bench (hat tip: Ben Golliver of Point Forward). It seems Bayless was sitting himself down anyway as Hollins pushed him, making the appearance that Hollins pushed Bayless down into a seat potentially misleading.
This was obviously a frustrating situation, Memphis just four minutes from its season ending, but that’s no excuse for Hollins to put his hands on Bayless like this. Of course, there are potential extenuating details unknown to us. We don’t see the inner workings of how Hollins and Bayless typically interact and whether behavior is out of the norm for them.
Besides, if the coach and player have a strong relationship based on mutual understanding, perhaps Bayless can forgive Hollins more easily if this crossed a line.