Midway through the third quarter of Game 6, Luka Doncic was trying to keep his Mavericks in the game. Down double digits, he came up the court on the right side, decided to drive at Paul George, and got called for an offensive foul (it was the right call, Doncic pushed off with his off arm).
As the ball came through the basket, Doncic grabbed it and threw it toward the referee on the baseline, and he did it with a little frustration behind it, but not in a threatening way.
Doncic got the T for hitting the ref with the ball 😬 pic.twitter.com/Hz5h64yTll
— ESPN Australia & NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) August 30, 2020
Doncic got a technical for that, which seemed questionable at the time.
Wednesday he got a $15,000 fine for “throwing the ball off the legs of a game official.”
Referees absolutely need to be protected and respected. Period. But did this play violate those concepts? To my mind, the technical was a little quick, but I can get it if there was a sense Doncic was frustrated and crossed a line. The fine seems overkill. And if this is $15,000, should Marcus Morris have gotten more for his acts?
The Clippers beat the Mavericks despite an outstanding series from Doncic, and they will take on Denver starting Thursday in the next round.