Kevin Durant explodes on Kuminga after brutal elbow to Sengun

Tempers flared during the second quarter of Wednesday night's game between the Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves at Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Jonathan Kuminga was whistled for a flagrant 1 foul after elbowing Alperen Sengun in the face.

The incident happened with 5:24 remaining in the second quarter.

Sengun had just missed a floater near the basket on a good contest from Kuminga.

Kuminga secured the defensive rebound for the Timberwolves.

But as he came down with the ball, he extended his arm and caught Sengun in the face with his elbow.

Sengun fell to the ground after taking the hit.

That sparked a fracas between the two teams.

Kevin Durant, the Rockets forward and future Hall of Famer, immediately confronted Kuminga on the floor.

Durant walked straight up to Kuminga and exchanged words with him.

Teammates and officials had to step in to separate the two sides.

The officials reviewed the incident on video.

They assessed a flagrant foul penalty one on Kuminga for excessive contact to the head of an opponent.

A flagrant 1 is defined by the NBA as unnecessary contact committed by a player against an opponent.

It is the less severe of the two flagrant foul classifications.

A flagrant 2, by contrast, involves unnecessary and excessive contact and results in an automatic ejection.

The only thing that likely saved Kuminga from a flagrant 2 was that he did not wind up his arm before hitting Sengun squarely on the jaw.

Sengun was awarded two free throws on the play.

He made both of them.

Alperen Sengun seemed to believe Kuminga should have been ejected, not just warned.

NBA fans saw the incident on social media and reacted in mixed ways.

Some praised Kevin Durant's leadership for standing up for his teammate.

One fan wrote: "I love that Kevin Durant was the first person to say something to Jonathan Kuminga. Don't tell me KD doesn't go to bat for his teammates."

Another fan said: "You have to like how Kevin Durant stood up for Alperen."

Others called out both parties involved.

Some defended Kuminga, saying the contact did not look intentional.

One fan commented: "That did not look like it was on purpose at all."

Another wrote: "Should've been a flopping foul on Sengun."

A different comment read: "That's a massive flop."

One fan referenced Kuminga's history with the Golden State Warriors: "Kuminga learned this from Draymond."

The game was neck-and-neck through the first three quarters.

The Timberwolves got the last laugh, thanks to a major fourth-quarter performance from Jonathan Kuminga.

He dropped eight points in the fourth quarter on 100% shooting (3-3).

He hit clutch buckets to help the Timberwolves pull away.

The Timberwolves defeated the Rockets 117-107.

Kuminga finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block.

He shot 5-10 from the field (50.0% FG) and 4-7 from three (57.1% 3P).

Meanwhile, the Timberwolves ruined a triple-double night for Alperen Sengun.

Sengun had 17 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists while shooting 5-15 from the field (33.3% FG).

Kevin Durant had 21 points, five rebounds, and two assists while shooting 7-14 from the field (50.0% FG) and 2-5 from three (40.0% 3P).

The Rockets are now 7-2 for the season (.778) and second in the West.

They sit behind the Portland Trail Blazers in the conference standings.

The Timberwolves improved to 6-3 and are seventh in the West.