Mavericks fined $750K by NBA for 'conduct detrimental to the league' vs. Bulls
The NBA announced Friday the Dallas Mavericks were fined $750,000 for "conduct detrimental to the league in an elimination game" after sitting some of their most productive players against the Chicago Bulls on April 7 in an attempt to better their draft position.
From the league's release:
"The Mavericks violated the league’s player resting policy and demonstrated through actions and public statements the organization’s desire to lose the game in order to improve the chances of keeping its first-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. The league did not find that the players who participated in the game were not playing to win."
“The Dallas Mavericks’ decision to restrict key players from fully participating in an elimination game last Friday against Chicago undermined the integrity of our sport,” said Joe Dumars, NBA Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations. “The Mavericks’ actions failed our fans and our league.”
In that game, which the Mavs lost 115-112, Dallas sat Kyrie Irving, Maxi Kleber, Tim Hardaway Jr., Josh Green and Christian Wood. Luka Dončić played but just for two quarters. Winning would have sent the Mavs to the play-in tournament. Losing eliminated them and gave them a better chance at keeping their first-round draft pick. Their 2023 first-round pick belongs to the New York Knicks as part of the Kristaps Porziņģis trade, but only if it's outside the top 10. Losing to the Bulls allowed the Mavs to cement the 10th seed in the upcoming NBA Draft lottery.
And with phenom Victor Wembanyama in the draft pool, that's what many teams want. Which is why the NBA and commissioner Adam Silver were keeping their eyes peeled for even a whiff of tanking.
Sitting those players will cost the Mavericks and owner Mark Cuban $750,000, which isn't much of a punishment when the team rakes in hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue every year (and the owner is a billionaire). There was the possibility of a harsher punishment if the team had told their participating players to try and lose on the court, but the NBA's investigation found that the tanking stopped at lineup construction and all of the Mavs guys who played against the Bulls last week were really playing to win.
