The NBA is investigating whether Isiah Thomas, the president and coach of the Knicks, ordered a hard foul that touched off a brawl with the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, several people involved in the investigation told the New York Times yesterday.

The Nuggets, according to those people, are pointing to an exchange between Thomas and Carmelo Anthony - part of which was captured by the MSG Network - that seemed to convey a threat. None of the people who spoke about the exchange wanted to be identified, because the investigation was ongoing.