Mavericks’ Luka Doncic dinged 35K by NBA for making money gesture at referee
The replay does seem to show Luka Doncic being fouled on a layup at the end of a tough 127 – 125 loss to the Golden State Warriors, but his reaction was enough for the NBA to fine the superstar 35K.
The NBA has fined Luka Doncic $35,000 for making a money gesture toward referees on Wednesday night. “basically saying the refs are getting paid to cheat” pic.twitter.com/dBqXS003P9
— SAY CHEESE! 👄🧀 (@SaycheeseDGTL) March 24, 2023
Doncic made a money gesture towards the referee, evidently implying that the ref was favouring the bigger market team in a call that honestly could have gone either way.
But the NBA acted swift, not wanting the thoughts of its fans to drift back into what many of us reflexively thought of – Tim Donaghy. Donaghy is the former NBA referee who was busted after the FBI intercepted phone calls between mob figures in New York where Donaghy was mentioned as the mob’s inside guy for fixing NBA games.
That may sound like a stretch, but if I thought of that immediately, I’m sure many others did as well.
Doncic is a frustrated player, a superstar looking for consistency but watching his team struggle. He’s probably a top 3 player in the league, and his frustrations are well placed. The Mavericks are a small club, and despite this being Doncic fifth year in the league, the veteran carries himself like he has one foot out the door already.
Mavericks' Luka Doncic expressed that he doesn't feel the same joy on the court lately. He mentioned there's "a lot going on" beyond basketball. pic.twitter.com/tgpViirHEo
— Grant Afseth (@GrantAfseth) March 25, 2023
The press conference after the game featured an emotional Doncic, who implied that it wasn’t just basketball serving as a distraction for him and his team.
“I don’t share details of my personal life,” Doncic said after a reporter asked him to expand on his remark that some of the frustrations are happening off the court.
Doncic is currently averaging 32.9 PPG, 8.6 RPG, and 8.2 assists. Despite the MVP-type numbers, the Mavericks are struggling, sitting at 11th place in the western conference.
