No love is lost between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs. Like it was a case a decade ago, both current iterations have a lot to beef over as the top-two title contenders for the 2026-27 regular season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Victor Wembanyama are viewed as two of the game's best, so that naturally comes with animosity.
That's why it shouldn't be a surprise to see the Thunder and Spurs go at it by Opening Night. It took a little over one quarter into OKC's 116-104 win over San Antonio to get things going. Fighting for positioning, De'Aaron Fox tossed Chet Holmgren out of his way.
Animosity bubbled to the surface. The basketball game morphed into an NBA-sanctioned scuffle. Wembanyama went at it with Jaylin Williams and others. Eventually, both sides were separated. After an NBA referee review, both sides received punishments.
Fox was handed a flagrant foul. And then Wembanyama, Williams, Jalen Williams and Kenrich Williams all had technical fouls. As the victim of the hooping crime, Holmgren was puzzled how OKC's punishment outweighed San Antonio's, three-to-two.
"I'm not necessarily sure how exactly we get three techs when for a reaction to something else. I don't fully understand that," Holmgren said. "But at the end of the day, I feel like anything that you're not willing to reciprocate is an advantage for the other team. So if they want that physical, we have to match that."
In the postgame scene, Fox also chipped in his two cents. He was much more devious about it. The former NBA All-Star rolled his eyes at Holmgren's fall. He essentially called him out for selling the contact. Especially since the seven-footer towers over him.
"Somebody grabs you like that and you're flying on the floor like that, you got other problems to worry about," Fox said. "I didn't throw him that hard, I promise you."
Add the Fox and Holmgren mini-fight to the ever-growing list of fights between the Thunder and Spurs. Even before the latter broke out as a surprising title contender, there was always bad blood between the two groups. Holmgren and Wembanyama have had a well-documented rivalry with each other — albeit the silent type — over the years since they were teenagers.
In their latest chapter, Holmgren finally earned a tally mark for his side. Not only did he outplay Wembanyama, but the Thunder straight-up bullied the Spurs. They led by as many as 26 points and were in thorough control throughout Opening Night.
At least Fox earned some trolling points with the Spurs fanbase. His flagrant foul on Holmgen was one of the viral moments of Opening Night. The Thunder and Spurs remain heated rivals. Even after four months of cooling off from an epic seven-game duel in the 2026 Western Conference Finals.
De’Aaron Fox goes after Chet Holmgren:
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) October 21, 2026
“Somebody grabs you like that and you're flying on the floor like that, you got other problems to worry about. I didn't throw him that hard, I promise you.”
(via @tom_orsborn) pic.twitter.com/G2rcuUsBqr
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: De'Aaron Fox calls out Chet Holmgren for flopping on flagrant foul