Trae Young fined $25K by NBA for throwing ball into stands after last-second win over Bulls
Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young celebrated a little too hard following his team's clutch overtime win against the Chicago Bulls on Sunday. Young was hit with a $25,000 fine from the NBA for throwing the ball into the stands at the conclusion of the 123-122 Hawks win.
The NBA announced the fine Monday.
The following was released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/DF8XjXTSPL
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) December 12, 2022
Young had good reason for celebrating the win. With the game tied 119-119, he hit a go-ahead shot to put the Hawks up by two with one second to play.
TRAE YOUNG 🥶❄️🧊 pic.twitter.com/HTiAqlraSn
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) December 12, 2022
With the game on the line, DeMar DeRozan was fouled while shooting a game-winning 3. He hit all three of his free throws to put the Bulls up 122-121 with under a second to go.
The Hawks then had one chance to win the contest. After calling timeout, Atlanta was able to inbound the ball on Chicago's side of the court. Jalen Johnson fired a perfect inbounds pass to AJ Griffin below the basket, and Griffin turned and released the ball before the clock expired. The ball went in, giving the Hawks an improbable 123-122 victory.
Young was directly under the basket when the ball dropped through the hoop. Before the ball hit the ground, he snatched it out of the air and chucked it into the stands in celebration.
In a tweet, Young sarcastically apologized to "the hawks fan(s) who got a chance to touch the game winning ball." Then ended the tweet with, "Can't celebrate s*** anymore."
The Hawks are paying Young just over $37 million this season, so the fine shouldn't impact him much. Next time, though, he might want to consider leaving the ball alone.