NBA fines Heat's Richardson $25K for shoe toss

Miami Heat guard Josh Richardson was fined $25,000 on Monday for throwing his shoe into the crowd, announced Kiki VanDeWeghe, NBA executive vice president of basketball operations.

The incident occurred during the Heat's 113-97 home loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 18.

With 6:31 remaining in the fourth quarter, Richardson flung his sneaker into the stands in disgust and was assessed a technical foul and ejected from the game.

Richardson finished the loss with 17 points, six rebounds and three assists in 25 minutes. He has been Miami's leading scorer this season, averaging 20.4 points through the season's first 16 games.

"Throwing something into the stands, no matter how you look at it, is unacceptable," said Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, who spoke with NBA officials by phone earlier Monday to give his side of the story before the discipline was handed out.

"The competitive frustration right now, everybody should be feeling that. This should not be something that's just deemed OK. It's not. And we have to change it."

Richardson will be available when the Heat host the Nets on Tuesday.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Kyrie Irving fined for NBA fan spat

Kyrie Irving is off to a rocky start with the Boston Celtics after the league slapped the point guard with a $25,000 fine on Sunday for verbally abusing a Philadelphia 76ers fan.

The exchange took place at halftime of the Celtics 102-92 win on Friday over the 76ers when a fan made a reference to Irving's former teammate LeBron James as the teams were heading to the locker rooms at the Wells Fargo Center arena.

"Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving has been fined $25,000 for using inappropriate language when responding to a fan," league vice president Kiki VanDeWeghe said in a statement.

The Celtics aquired Irving in an offseason move after he demanded a trade from the NBA finals runner-up Cleveland Cavaliers.

It is the second time in as many days the NBA has fined one of its players for an incident with a fan. On Saturday VanDeWeghe announced that DeMarcus Cousins had been fined $25,000 after the New Orleans Pelican player got into a heated exchange with a female fan during a game in Memphis.

The fan in Philadelphia reportedly yelled "Kyrie, where's LeBron" as the Celtics walked past, drawing a response from Irving.

Irving admitted he yelled at the fan, which was caught on video, but when asked by ESPN.com if he had any regrets said, "Hell no".

Irving then talked about the exchange like it was a run in with another NBA player.

"At the end of the day, we're human. It's in the heat of the moment, and frustrations arises. We were at halftime, we were down by four, in an environment, a season opener in Philly," he said.

The Cavaliers' trade of Irving to the Celtics for guard Isaiah Thomas, forward Jae Crowder, rookie centre Ante Zizic and two draft picks in August was one of the league's blockbuster deals of the offseason.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Pelicans' Cousins fined for incident with female fan

NEW YORK -- NBA bad boy DeMarcus Cousins has been slapped with a $25,000 fine by the league after getting into a heated verbal exchange with a female fan during the New Orleans Pelicans season opener.

The 2.11 metre (6-foot-11) forward was fined by the league's disciplinary officials for using "inappropriate language" during the Pelicans 103-91 loss Wednesday to the Memphis Grizzlies in Memphis, Tennessee.

"New Orleans Pelicans forward DeMarcus Cousins has been fined $25,000 for directing inappropriate language towards a fan," league vice president Kiki VanDeWeghe said in a news release on Saturday.

The 27-year-old Cousins has been assessed the most technical fouls in the NBA in each of the past two seasons.

Cousins was fined $50,000 last season for accosting a reporter and another $50,000 for two separate outbursts directed at Los Angeles and Utah fans.

Cousins won a gold medal with the USA at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Pacers' George, coach fined for criticizing refs

NEW YORK -- The NBA fined Indiana Pacers forward Paul George and head coach Nate McMillan on Wednesday over their comments criticizing league officials in the wake of the team's loss to Chicago on Monday.



George, who was fined $15,000, was anticipating such a move even as he voice his frustration after the game.

"I've been fined multiple times," George said, but went on to say he believes the Pacers don't get the benefit of the doubt on foul calls.

"Since I've been in this jersey we've always fought this battle," George said. "Maybe the league has teams they like so they can give them the benefit of the doubt. We're the little brother of the league. We're definitely the little brother of the league."

George finished the game with 14 points, but he and McMillan were both irked that the Pacers star went to the free throw line just once.

"They've got to give us more respect," a steamed McMillan said after the game in remarks that brought a $10,000 fine.

"Paul shot one free throw the entire game, played 39 minutes. This is the second game where he's getting a lot of grabbing, a lot of holding.

"They (opponents) are getting away with a lot of grabbing on Paul. They (officials) have got to call the game both ways."

The fines were announced in a statement Wednesday from NBA executive vice president Kiki VanDeWeghe.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Warriors' Green escapes ban, is fined for flagrant foul 2

Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green escaped a possible one-game suspension on Monday when he was fined by the National Basketball Association for a flagrant foul that was upgraded from category 1 to 2.

Green faced the chance of being banned for Tuesday's Game Four of the Western Conference Finals against Oklahoma City after he had kicked Thunder center Steven Adams in the groin during Sunday's Game Three.

However, the league instead decided to fine Green $25,000 after reviewing the play and upgrading his foul.

"After a thorough investigation that included review of all available video angles and interviews with the players involved and the officials working the game, we have determined that Green's foul was unnecessary and excessive and warranted the upgrade and fine," Kiki VanDeWeghe, the NBA's executive vice president of basketball operations, said in a statement.

"During a game, players - at times - flail their legs in an attempt to draw a foul, but Green's actions in this case warranted an additional penalty."

The incident occurred with 5:57 left in the second quarter of the Thunder's 133-105 win over the defending NBA champion Warriors in Oklahoma City that put them 2-1 ahead in the best-of-seven series.

"The way I look it, it looks intentional to me," Thunder guard Russell Westbrook told reporters about Green's play after the game.

However, Warriors coach Steve Kerr described the play as "inadvertent", saying: "I was shocked they even looked at it. There is inadvertent contact all the time on plays.

"So that really surprised. I would think they would rescind it. This stuff happens all the time."

(Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes in Los Angeles; Editing by Larry Fine)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com