Tonight’s NBA Cup game at the United Center between the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat took an unexpected turn when Kevin Huerter, known for his steady demeanor, found himself at the center of controversy. After an odd exchange that led to an official review, he was ejected from the game. And now sharing his almost confused expression are the fans!

The replay made everything clearer, though. Heat player Pelle Larsson went straight at Huerter, looking to draw contact on a mid-range attempt. Huerter hit his arm, which counted as a shooting foul. As the whistle blew, the 27-year-old, clearly frustrated with the call, tapped the ball, which bounced off the back of referee Che Flores’ leg, but what followed stunned everyone.

After the sequence occurred, referee Tony Brothers blew his whistle, calling an immediate ejection on Huerter, causing both him and his teammates to protest the call. After a brief discussion with Bulls head coach Billy Donovan, Brothers called for a review. The referees convened, reviewed the sequence, and quickly delivered their decision: Huerter was ejected from the game, leaving Chicago on edge as play resumed.

The play occurred during the 3rd quarter, with 8:18 left on the clock. The score stood at 78-57, and it marked the beginning of the end for Chicago, which proceeded to go down big following Huerter’s ejection.

Before the ejection, Huerter had played just under 10 minutes but struggled with his shot, managing to convert on only one of his four attempts, while adding on two rebounds, a steal, and a block.

Unfortunately for the Bulls, their troubles didn’t end there. Later in the game, Isaac Okoro was fouled on a drive to the hoop, and despite staying in to shoot his free throws, he was subbed out immediately afterwards and headed to the locker room. According to reports, he seems to have tweaked his left hamstring.

After their loss to the Heat, Chicago falls to 1-2 in Group play for the NBA Cup, along with a -42 point differential, making it unlikely for them to make it to the Knockout stage. Along with this, tonight marks their seventh loss of the season and sixth in eight games following a promising 5-0 start to the season.

While that’s that, let’s circle back to how social media exploded the moment clips of Kevin Huerter’s ejection against the Miami Heat were uploaded.

Fans can’t believe Kevin Huerter’s sudden ejection against the Heat

Amid the severe mocking from fans, one sarcastically posted, “Tony Brothers ejects known-troublemaker Kevin Huerter for this absolutely VILE act of violence.” The exaggeration captured how many felt the ejection made a regular ball tap look like a crime scene.

Others couldn’t believe the simplicity of the ball tap that triggered the whistle, as one viewer put it, “Kevin Huerter jus got ejected for just tapping the ball after the foul. This league isn’t real 😂,” showcasing the widespread disbelief that such a minor action escalated to a massive punishment.

Another comment labeled it the softest call in recent memory, reading, “Kevin Huerter just got the weakest ejection of all time. What is this? 😭” The frustration and confusion behind the call was a common sentiment shared across X as fans replayed the clip, trying to understand the officials’ rationale.

One observer tried to mediate the conversation, explaining, “Unfortunate that the ball hit the ref. It goes anywhere else and he was good. Should’ve been a tech not an ejection.”

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Che Flores, who is the NBA’s first out nonbinary and transgender referee, was facing the scoring table signaling the foul when they were struck by the ball on the back of their right leg. And almost immediately, Brothers whistled a technical foul against the #13, who held out both hands upon realizing he had been ejected.

“I was frustrated at the call, but again, I apologize if that was too much. Obviously it was,” Huerter told reporters after the game. “I was not meaning to throw the ball at the official.”

Finally, one reply summed up the belief online, simply stating, “‘Violently launched’ is a bit of a stretch.” The Bulls fanbase and the NBA X at large were stunned by how quickly a dead-ball moment turned into a debate about the sensitivity of the league.