The NBA fined Trae Young $20,000 for using expletives while talking to an official during the end of a close game. The Atlanta Hawks Guard was protesting a no-call during the last possession and seemed to have lost his temper, leading to the league taking action against him.
The Athletic initially reported the news, following which the NBA released an official statement on its website.
Young complained about the official’s decision not to call a foul on Sacramento Kings center Willie Cauley-Stein. He believed that Cauley-Stein knocked him over while he set a screen. Danilo Gallinari eventually missed the last shot, and the Hawks lost the game.
The League stood by the referee’s judgment in their official statement. This was their stance while talking about the incident between Cauley-Stein and Trae Young.
The play that Young disputed was correctly ruled a no-call. Under the playing rules, Dallas’ Willie Cauley-Stein was entitled to a normal step on a screen from behind, which he took, and which led to incidental and legal contact between Cauley-Stein and Young.
This loss was probably frustrating, considering the Hawks lost a close game to the Mavericks nearly a week ago. They remain under .500 after the loss and currently have an 11-13 record. However, they’ll probably still make the playoffs, even if they do it as a lower seed.
