Marcus Morris Sr. made sure his presence was felt in the matchup against the on March 25. Midway through the second quarter of the Cavaliers' 115-92 win over the Hornets, Charlotte forward Brandon Miller weaved through traffic and found his way into the paint after making his way around Caris LeVert. To give Miller more space to operate, Hornets center Nick Richards jogged into the lane, with the hope of drawing 7-foot-1 shot-blocking center Jarrett Allen away from Miller. As Richards had his head turned toward Miller, Morris dropped down from the player he was guarding to check Richards. However, not only did Morris check Richards, but the former also elbowed the latter in the side of the head as he ran by, causing him to collide with Allen and end up on the floor. Almost immediately, the referees reviewed the play and accessed Morris a Flagrant Foul Type 2, which is an automatic ejection. The
NBA defines a flagrant 2 foul as "unnecessary and excessive contact committed by a player against an opponent" and the opposing team is awarded two free throws and possession along with the ejection. It is also interesting to note that in the play before his ejection, Morris hit a 3-pointer for his only points of the game. In all, Morris played eight minutes and scored three points along with an ejection. It took the 34-year-old Morris less than two weeks to get his first ejection as a member of the Cavaliers, as Cleveland amid their . Known as a hard-nosed player, Morris' contract with the Cavaliers will net him $183,704, all guaranteed. The Cavaliers is Morris's third team this season, having started the year with the . Morris was then traded to the , alongside Nicolas Batum, Kenyon Martin Jr. and Robert Covington in exchange for James Harden, P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrusev. With the 76ers, Morris played in 37 games - seven starts - and averaged 6.7 points and 2.9 rebounds in 17.2 minutes per game, hitting 40 per cent of his 3-point attempts. Then at the trade deadline, Morris was that sent him to the , which also sent Doug McDermott to the . The Spurs, a rebuilding team, then waived Morris, who then signed with the Cavaliers, amid their injury issues. In five games with Cleveland, Morris is averaging 7.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 18.4 minutes off the bench. That said, Cavaliers star guard reportedly is targeting a return in the coming days, with the most likely option being Cleveland's matchup against the 76ers, Morris' former team. Considering how the 34-year-old has played with the Cavaliers, Cleveland's front office might be interested in retaining the veteran for the rest of the season. Regardless of how the rest of the season pans out for Morris and the Cavaliers, the hard-nosed forward surely made an impact in a very short amount of time, showing his mettle as a tough-nosed defender. All the latest news, showbiz, lifestyle and sports updates, brought to you by our dedicated
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