Christmas is most definitely not a time for shoving half-punches, Quincy Acy.

The New York Knicks power forward lost it for a second late in a 102-91 loss to the Washington Wizards. Star point guard John Wall, who had been lighting up the Knicks all day, ran into Acy in a transition play that admittedly was pretty awkward. But after both fell to the ground briefly, Acy got up and was ready to scrap.

He seemed to be going for the punch but changed his mind and switched up to a shove midway through. Smart move: A direct punch might have drawn Acy a long suspension.

Acy promptly was ejected for a flagrant 2 foul, and Wall made both free throws. Then the Wizards, who kept possession because of the technical foul, hit a three-pointer, pretty much ending any chances of a Knicks comeback.

Wall didn’t back down but also didn’t do anything to warrant his own punishment, though he still showed contrition after the game for his role.

“Me being a key player to my team, I’ve got to try to keep my emotions in and not get a technical or get ejected,” he said in an ESPN postgame interview. “I’m a mature player, and I know how much I mean to my team.”

Wall also had the support of his teammates, while Acy …

All on Christmas. And as Jalen Rose told Rolling Stone recently, that isn’t the way to do things:

“I was playing against the Knicks, got tangled up with Kurt Thomas. He elbowed me and pushed me and we both got ejected. I was upset about that because Christmas Day, it’s a horrible day to get ejected.”

H/T Ben Golliver for the video

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