The NBA has fined Jamal Murray $100,000 for his antics during Monday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.
Murray — a talented guard for the Denver Nuggets — received the fine for “throwing multiple objects in the direction of a game official during live play,” according to the NBA on Tuesday.
The objects in question were a towel and heat pack tossed on the court late in the second quarter as Denver was on its way to a lopsided 106-80 home loss against the Timberwolves.
Officiating crew chief Marc Davis stated post-game that officials were unaware anything was thrown from the bench, had they known, “we could have reviewed it under the hostile act trigger. The penalty would have been a technical foul.”
The incidents swiftly went viral:
Trending:
Jamal Murray throws a heat pack pic.twitter.com/JDADMojQgp
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) May 7, 2024
Jamal Murray threw a towel onto the court during Game 2 pic.twitter.com/luj2mKryID
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 7, 2024
Was this punishment fair?
After Murray threw the heat pack, he was seen throwing the towel in Davis’s direction which landed at his heels. Luckily for Murray, fellow Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope retrieved the heat pack and someone else swept the towel aside before Davis noticed.
Wolves coach Chris Finch said after the game, “We tried to impress upon (the officials) that there’s probably not many fans in the building that have a heat pack. So, it probably had to come from the bench,” before further calling Murray’s actions, “inexcusable and dangerous.”
While Murray left after the game without commenting, it’s hard to disagree with Finch as there is no justification for throwing a temper tantrum, no matter how badly you are losing (if anything, that makes it even worse). These are professional athletes with the eyes of millions on them closely observing their conduct.
These types of outburst only tell fans — especially young ones — that at the height of the sport, raw outbursts towards officials are fine.
A fine of $100,000 is pocket change to Murray, whose salary — According to Sporting News — for the 2023 – 24 season amounts to $33.8 million.
Perhaps adding to the consternation, many fans and pundits expected Murray to be suspended for at least one game for his actions. Murray was not suspended, and scored 24 points in the Nuggets’ big 117-90 road win against the Timberwolves.
Additionally, there is a real worry that the young and impressionable fans who will never make it as professional athletes — the kids who will grow up and try to find actual jobs to earn a living — will still glean something from this tantrum.
In seeing that type of behavior, they’re led to believe this is what success looks like.
Don’t bother getting along with the people who make the rules. Act out when you feel slighted, take the hit, and move on.
Murray’s overall message here is blaming someone else for your shortcomings. In Denver’s loss, players should’ve look inward with a sense of responsibility, instead of lashing out like a toddler.
Murray is by no means alone. This mentality exists broadly in our culture.
To no surprise, people who think like this don’t go far in life.
Murray and the Nuggets will try to even up their second round series when they play the Timberwolves in Minnesota tonight.
