LOS ANGELES _ Los Angeles Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson was fined $15,000 "for throwing a forearm above the shoulders to Miami Heat guard Goran Dragic," the NBA said in a news release.
"I thought it was going to be worse to be honest with you," Clarkson said. "But it is what it is. Gotta get past it."
Clarkson and Dragic were ejected from the Lakers' 127-100 win over the Heat on Friday. They jostled in the paint before Clarkson used his forearm to push Dragic to the ground.
"When he switched on me, he kind of elbowed me in the stomach a little bit and I kind of shoved him a little bit out the lane," Clarkson said Friday. "He came back and kind of chunked like an elbow in my chest. From then I pushed him as well."
Dragic denied elbowing Clarkson.
"He was the aggressor and I got ejected," he told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was livid at Dragic's ejection. At the time he was the Heat's leading scorer in the game.
"It's really shameful, disgraceful that Goran Dragic got thrown out of that game," Spoelstra said. "Gets an elbow to his face, somebody that wants to fight, knocks him down on the ground and just a bailout, shameful, disgraceful ejection."
The Lakers had some concern the incident would lead to consequences in another game for Clarkson, but no suspension came with his fine.
"Just kind of one of those warning things," Clarkson said. "It was my first one. Just something I've got to deal with."
