If Denver Nuggets fans didn't know who Mat Ishbia was when the 2023 playoffs rolled around, they learned during the Nuggets-Suns second-round series. An "altercation" between Ishbia and Nikola Jokiu0107 went viral, as Jokiu0107 was trying to grab the ball from Ishbia's hands to continue play. Ishbia became Phoenix's new majority owner in February, a couple of months before the postseason began.
Jokiu0107 approached Ishbia before the next game, shaking his hand and patting him on the back. All was good in Ishbia's world again, at least temporarily. The Nuggets won the series, 4-2, eliminating the Suns in their first postseason appearance with Kevin Durant.