NBA legend one of 12 ejected after wild brawl sees coach throw punch at player

Former NBA legend Dwight Howard was involved in a wild brawl during a basketball game in Taiwan that saw coaches get involved and 12 men ejected.

The T1 league game between Taoyuan Leopards and TaiwanBeer HeroBears ended in chaos when an elbow to the face sparked an all-out melee.

With less than a minute left HeroBears captain, Chiang Yu copped a rough-looking knock to the face from Leopards player Chen Hsiao-jung.

Chiang Yu clearly wasn’t happy as he immediately pushed the opposition player off as officials quickly got involved to separate the two.

Perhaps most at fault for escalating the entire issue was HeoBears assistant coach Lin Chieh-ho who ran onto the field and charged at Hsiao-jung.

Swinging fists, the coach failed to connect with the player but succeeded in getting almost everyone on the court involved in the brawl.

Footage shows players from both sides attempting to break up the situation before eventually getting involved in chaotic scenes.

Former NBA champion Howard could be seen trying to de-escalate the situation and watching the brawl from the sidelines.

The game was delayed for over 20 minutes as officials reviewed the footage and came to decision on what the penalties would be.

Seven Leopards players and five HeroBears were tossed out - including Howard.

Howard reportedly complained at the decision to throw him out as he maintained that he was trying to stop the ongoing brawl.

But his complaints fell on deaf ears.

Howard’s Leopards went on to win the game 120-108 with Howard recording 28 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists before his ejection.

The eight-time NBA All-Star joined the Taiwanese team in November 2022 and is reportedly on a salary worth over $1 million.

His move was said to have been made to raise the level of competition in the league which was founded in 2021.