The NBA fined Los Angeles Lakers coach Luke Walton $15,000 on Wednesday for criticizing officials after Monday's game against the San Antonio Spurs.
Walton expected the fine. After the Lakers' 143-142 overtime loss, he opened his news conference by airing his frustrations.
"I was going to save my money, but I just can't anymore. ... It's 70-something points in the paint to 50-something, again they outshoot us from the free-throw line _ 38 free throws," Walton said.
"Watch the play, watch the play where I got a technical foul on. Watch what happened to LeBron James' arm. It's the same thing that James Harden and Chris Paul shot 30 free throws on us the night before. Then LeBron pulls up on a screen, somebody trying to fight over. Same, same thing they shot free throws on. Same thing! We are scoring 70 points a night. In the paint. ... Watch how Josh Hart plays this game. He played 40 minutes tonight. All he does is attack the rim. Zero free throws tonight. Zero."
The Lakers' frustrations with the officiating are part of what led to the fight during their home opener on Saturday. After the Houston Rockets' James Ennis clotheslined Hart, he was assessed a flagrant foul 1. Many of the Lakers felt Ennis should have been ejected. Then when Brandon Ingram got called for his fourth personal foul, Ingram grew angry with referee Jason Phillips and drew a technical foul for shoving Harden in the back and then confronting Phillips.
"If we are going to play a certain way, let's not reward people for flopping 30 feet from the hole on plays that have nothing to do with that possession," Walton said. "They're just flopping just to see if they get a foul call. And then not reward players that are physically going to the basket and getting hit. It's not right."
