The NBA’s $25,000 fines are ridiculous. The NBA fined the Minnesota Timberwolves $25,000 for “resting” player D’Angelo Russell on February 8th against the Denver Nuggets. Russell missed the game due to a quadricep injury, but according to the NBA, the player was fine to play the game and should have participated. The fine incurred by the Timberwolves is utterly ridiculous as they were penalized for protecting a key player from gaining a more serious injury. Minnesota will face off in a Western Conference showdown with the New Orleans Pelicans to tip-off March. Basketball fans can visit Silentbet for the latest bet bonus and tips before wagering on the team they believe will win the game.
The NBA has been notorious over the years with its desire to fine teams and players. Some have been just as ridiculous – if not more so – than the fine $25,000 leveled at Minnesota in February.
The NBA’s $25,000 Fines Are Ridiculous
Jordan switches to No. 23
In the 1995 NBA Playoffs, Michael Jordan was back from his baseball sabbatical but not up to his best on the court. Jordan returned to the team wearing the No. 45 jersey after his previously worn No. 23 was retired by the Chicago Bulls. Midway through the Eastern Conference Finals, Jordan switched back to No. 23 as it gave him the mystique that the other number lacked. Jordan was fined $25,000 for every game he wore No. 23. He was also fined another $5,000 for not wearing black shoes, which the rest of the team wore.
Long shorts
The Michigan Wolverines changed basketball history in the early 1990s by wearing long, baggy shorts. Players “sagging” their shorts also became popular. To white out of touch NBA executives, long shorts was a criminal offense. In the late 1990s, players who wore shorts that descended an inch below their knees received a $2,500 fine. The players’ team were punished with a $25,000 fine. Minnesota Timberwolves player Kevin Garnett was a regular to receive the punishment.
Adam Morrison flips the bird
Remember Adam Morrison? It is fine if you said, ‘no’, because we don’t either. Morrison was the No. 3 pick in the NBA Draft in 2006 by the Charlotte Bobcats (who?). The Gonzaga star was an NBA flop and spent just four years in the league with the Bobcats and LA Lakers. Morrison’s time in the NBA can be summed up in the $25,000 fine he got after flipping off a fan. It was a lot of money for nothing.
Wet Willy
In 2012, just to show how unfun the NBA is, the league fined Dallas Mavericks player Delonte West $25,000 for giving Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward a wet willy during a game. Hayward got the joke and laughed about it. The NBA didn’t.
Rules for players and fans are different
In 2018 while playing for the Golden State Warriors, Kevin Durant was heckled by a Dallas Mavericks fan during a game. According to reports, the NBA officials refused Durant’s requests to deal with the offensive fan. Some claim the fan had made inoffensive taunts, but Durant still found it necessary to tell the supporter “watch the [expletive] game and shut the [expletive] up”. The NBA fined him $25,000.
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