The Houston Rockets and the New Orleans Pelicans are not even waiting until the regular season to get the fisticuffs started.
Houston Rockets swingman Amen Thompson got into a skirmish with New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado during their preseason matchup on Tuesday. During the second quarter at Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Ala., Thompson and Alvarado were boxing each other out off a shot attempt by Houston’s Jabari Smith Jr.
The two got tangled up and went to the ground (with Alvarado seemingly pulling Thompson down and Thompson attempting to shove him away). After getting up, Thompson and Alvarado got physical again before finally being separated by teammates.
Here is the video.
AMEN THOMPSON VS. JOSE ALVARADO.
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 15, 2025
pic.twitter.com/3229al7NPw
Alvarado was given a loose ball foul as well as a technical foul for the incident. Meanwhile, Thompson was hit with a flagrant 1 foul for shoving Alvarado. As a result, the Rockets got one free throw, and the Pelicans then got two.
It is debatable who was more to blame there between Alvarado and Thompson. But we do know that Alvarado has a history of irritating opponents (including some top NBA players) and that Thompson also once sparked a benches-clearing brawl with Miami Heat star Tyler Herro. Now Alvarado and Thompson will have to wait all the way until Dec. 18 to get another shot at each other, which is set to be the first of four regular season meetings between the Southwest Division rival Rockets and Pelicans.
