Martin Luther King Day featured a full slate of NBA action featuring its best teams and star players. The night finished with a much-anticipated matchup between the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Clippers.
Houston, being one of the top team's in the league, is a big draw whenever they go into any city. This game was different, however. It was the return of Chris Paul to Los Angeles.
Last summer saw somewhat of a bitter separation between Chris Paul and the Clippers. He informed the team that he did not wish to sign and play there, but was willing to sign so that he could be traded to a team of his choice. The deal for the Clippers is they would at least get something in return for their star player leaving.
A deal was struck that sent numerous depth players from Houston to Los Angeles and ultimately, the Rockets got their man. The whole process didn't come without some hard feelings though.
The game itself carried the tension as just about everyone was trash talking, even coaches and players on the bench in street clothes.
This led to several tense moments, the highlight being Rockets coach Mike Dantoni appearing to yell some heated expletives at Clippers forward Blake Griffin.
Austin Rivers, though not playing, became the target of multiple Houston players. After the game, Trevor Ariza, James Harden, and Gerald Green went looking for Rivers. Incredibly, they were led by Chris Paul who apparently showed them a secret passage in the Staples Center that allowed them to get to the Clippers locker room.
Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed once they arrived and no physical altercation took place. That didn't stop the internet from going wild about the whole incident.
Twitter reacts hilariously
As expected, Twitter users had a field day with the WWE type antics that went on after the game.
Chris Paul channeled his inner Hulk Hogan as he nearly started a brawl in his former team's locker room.
Finally, one user managed to sum up the entire timeline of events. Somehow this makes it even more unbelievable.
Breaking up the band
It wasn't too long ago that Chris Paul joined Blake Griffin as they barricaded center DeAndre Jordan inside his house so he wouldn't, or couldn't, sign with the Dallas Mavericks. It was a cheeky move, but there is no denying that it sabotaged the deal he had in place with Dallas.
The public was forgiving because the guys wanted to keep their core together. A core they thought was capable of a title run.
Fast forward a year later and Paul has given up to jump ship to the Rockets who have a much stronger case to be made as a title contender right now and going forward.
The Clippers have a right to be angry. This latest incident, though funny, is sure to mar the time Paul spent in LA.