Blinksportsnews247
The NBA said on Tuesday that guard Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggets had been fined $100,000 but had not been suspended for “throwing multiple objects in the direction of a game official during live play.”
Late in the second quarter of Denver’s 108-80 loss to Minnesota, Murray of Kitchener, Ontario, threw a towel and a hot pack onto the court, giving the Timberwolves a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinal series that will go to Minneapolis this weekend.
The Nuggets trailed by 28 points just before halftime, and they were miffed about the refereeing.
TNT replays of Murray sitting at the end of Denver’s bench and tossing the hot pack into the court attracted the most attention. Just before Karl-Anthony Towns of Minnesota made a layup with 4:41 remaining in the second quarter, it skidded across the floor as players fought for position in the lane.
The fans was warned not to throw any objects onto the field by the public address announcer as Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope grabbed and threw the heat pack away.
After the game, chief of the officiating crew Marc Davis informed a pool reporter that the officials had no idea the object had originated from the bench. If not, “we could have examined it in accordance with the hostile act trigger.” A technical foul would have been the punishment.
We made an effort to persuade the officials that most fans in the building do not likely own heat packs. So, after the game, Wolves coach Chris Finch observed, “It probably had to come from the bench.”
Murray’s acts, according to Finch, were “inexcusable and dangerous.”
When questioned about it after the game, Nuggets coach Michael Malone backed down, claiming he was unaware that his point guard had been the offender. Murray exited the arena without speaking to reporters.
Tuesday wasn’t a Nuggets game. After practice on Wednesday, they will be available again.
Murray was seen throwing a towel towards Davis a few seconds before he threw the heat pack onto the court. When the towel landed at Davis’ heels, a person seated on the sidelines stood up and swiftly took it off. Davis failed to notice.
In Game 2, Murray shot 3 of 18 for 8 points, limited by a tight left calf and the Timberwolves’ relentless defence. That subpar performance followed his scoreless first half in Game 1, which marked the first time in his 59 career postseason appearances that he had done so in either half.
Blinksportsnews247
