NBA reverses second technical foul on Luka Doncic versus Thunder
The NBA on Wednesday withdrew the second technical that resulted in the ejection of Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic in their loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night.
The foul occurred in the fourth quarter, with the Lakers leading 108-107, and was "rescinded upon review by the league office," as announced on social media. The Lakers ultimately lost 136-120.
Doncic seemed to have said something to a fan sitting courtside before being called for the technical by referee J.T. Orr, who believed the trash talk was directed at him. Both Doncic and teammate LeBron James argued their case, but to no avail, and Doncic was soon ejected from the game.
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"I have never had a fan ejected," Doncic said on Tuesday night, explaining how he has interacted with opposing fans without involving arena security. "Never. But if the fan is going to talk, I will talk back, as always. That had nothing to do with the referee. So I didn't really understand."
Doncic, who received his first technical in the third quarter, ended the game with 23 points and five assists in 31 minutes.
Crew chief Tony Brothers stated in a pool report after the game that Doncic's first technical was because he "used profanity towards a game official." The second technical was given because Doncic "directly looked at an official and used vulgar language."
According to ESPN, the fan, Jeremy Price, claimed that Doncic was yelling at him, not Orr.
"During the game, I mentioned that he missed a shot because he was short, and he turned around and shot an expletive at me. J.T. happened to see it and, at that point, he gave him a technical," Price told ESPN on Tuesday night.
The Lakers (48-31) were ranked third in the Western Conference on Wednesday, with a game against the Dallas Mavericks (38-41) that night. This will be Doncic's first game in Dallas since being traded. It will also be former Lakers star center Anthony Davis' first game against his former team since the trade in February that shook the league.
