The Celtics' blockbuster trade of Kristaps Porzingis to the Hawks on Tuesday night included a bit of a homecoming, with Atlanta sending Lawrence, Mass. native Georges Niang back to Boston in the deal.
A heartwarming story—if there wasn't some bad blood potentially set to bubble back up.
Back in 2023, when Niang was a bench player for the Philadelphia 76ers, he was caught on video grabbing Celtics forward Jaylen Brown's leg as he attempted to get back on defense during an Eastern Conference Finals game at Boston's TD Garden.
The video has since resurfaced on social media. Take a look:
Jaylen Brown and Georges Niang were both given a technical foul after Niang appeared to grab Brown's leg from the bench. pic.twitter.com/rBwelUVROZ
— ESPN (@espn) May 14, 2023
Brown didn't retaliate—physically, anyway—and instead opted to stare back at the Philly bench while talking some smack. Both he and Niang were assessed technical fouls for the interaction by referee Scott Foster.
Now teammates in Boston, we'll see if the two can ultimately get past the spat nearly two years after it happened.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Video of Georges Niang’s Dirty Move on Jaylen Brown Resurfaces After Celtics Trade.