Harden swiped at Gordon’s face, prompting Gordon to chase after Harden, seemingly willing and ready to take a swing or two of his own. Both players were ultimately held back — in Gordon’s case, by Clippers center Ivica Zubac.

The tension is rising in the first-round series between the Clippers and Nuggets. Tempers flared near halftime of Game 4 between LA and Denver, and while six technical fouls were doled out, there were no ejections.

Michael Porter Jr.’s status for Game 5 of the Denver Nuggets’ first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers is very much up in the air after Porter momentarily left the bench during an on-court altercation that resulted in half of a dozen technical fouls.