Watch: Thunder and Bucks clash in NBA Cup Finals

The confrontation attracted dual technicals for both Hartenstein and Jackson, although viewers may have been confused as to what actually provoked it. A play earlier, Jackson got around a Hartenstein screen and beat Gilgeous-Alexander when he missed a jumper and appeared to land awkwardly.

But the finger-pointing followed an innocuous play in which Giannis Antetokounmpo lost his footing in the lane, then called timeout. As the Greek Freak lay on the ground, he seemed confused as to exactly why both teams had to be separated. Even though it was a basketball game, no one was ever in danger of actually throwing or receiving a hit.

Although there is no best teammate award for the NBA Cup, Hartenstein appears to be in contention for the title. During the Thunder’s semifinal win over the Houston Rockets on Saturday, Cason Wallace received a technical foul for a confrontation with Alperen Sengun.

After the game, Hartenstein offered to cover everything the NBA put Wallace to the technical.

While Hartenstein and Jackson didn’t get into a physical showdown, the OKC center may have hoped that sticking up for his teammate could reverse his team’s poor shooting from behind the arc. The Thunder shot 1-for-17 from three-point range in the first half of Monday’s NBA Cup Finals, which is how they trailed 51-50 at halftime despite shooting 63 percent on three-pointers.

The only question is whether those techniques will count toward the season totals for Hartenstein and Jackson. The wins, losses and player statistics from this last match do not count in the record books. For the purposes of fines, the two players hope the T’s don’t count either.