Being right was never going to save Nick Nurse and Kelly Oubre from a fine, although it likely did lessen it.
After a no-call on Oubre’s drive to the basket on the final play, giving the Clippers a 108-107 win over the 76ers, Oubre and Nurse charged the referees and verbally berated them. Oubre appears to point at each of the referees and call them a “b****,” among other things.
Describe this final possession in one word: ______ pic.twitter.com/aHIWDKhkuO
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) March 28, 2024
Those actions earned them each a $50,000 fine, the league announced Friday. Nurse’s fine was “for aggressively pursuing and verbally abusing game officials,” while Oubre’s was “for verbally abusing and directing an obscene gesture toward game officials.”
Oubre and Nurse’s frustration turned out to be justified — after looking at the review postgame, Crew Chief Kevin Scott admitted Paul George should have been called for a foul on Oubre’s drive.
“On the last play on the floor, in real time the crew interpreted that play as the defender jumping vertically. However, in postgame video review we did observe some slight drift to his left by the defender George, and a foul should have been ruled.”
Being right may make Nurse and Oubre feel a little better, but it doesn’t change the sting of a fine.
