After berating officials in a tight loss to the Clippers, 76ers wing Kelly Oubre and coach Nick Nurse both received their fines.
76ers Starter Receives Hefty Fine After Berating Officials
Oubre and coach Nurse both received a $50,000 fine for verbally abusing referees after a close 108-107 loss to the Clippers. The decision comes after referees called many controversial decisions that could’ve split the decision between a win and a loss.
With 52 seconds left and Philadelphia up 104-102, Oubre and star Clippers guard Paul George competed for a loose ball that rolled out of bounds. Although refs initially gave possession to the Sixers, they flipped it after Clippers coach Tyronn Lue challenged the play. According to ESPN analytics, the Sixers’ chance of winning plummeted from 81% to 61%. Oubre was seen arguing with officials after the call.
Oubre looked similarly confused after another call. With the Tyrese Maxey-led Sixers up 107-105 with 16 seconds left on the clock, Oubre was called for a shooting foul on Kawhi Leonard. Leonard made both the shot and the free throw to put the Clippers up by one. He argued with officials, adamant that the contact he used to contest the shot was fair.
The last, most impactful call came in the dying seconds of the game. Oubre looked to get a final, buzzer-beating shot as time ticked down but suffered heavy contact from George. Oubre, livid, stormed to the referees alongside Nick Nurse. Both verbally abused all three members of the refereeing crew.
After the game, lead referee Kevin Scott admitted that they had missed the last call that could have sent Oubre to the line for free throws.
“In real time the crew interpreted that play as the defender jumping vertically,” Scott wrote in a pool report sent to reporters after the game. “However, in post-game video review we did observe some slight drift to his left by the defender George, and a foul should have been ruled.”
Oubre admitted regret for his words and apologized for confronting the officials so intensely.
“In the heat of the moment, in an intense basketball game of course and we’re not perfect. The refs are not perfect,” Oubre told media minutes after the game. “I want to apologize for losing my cool because that’s something I work on each and every day and trying to represent God in the best way that I can. And that wasn’t it.”
Large Fines For Both
Nurse and Kelly Oubre each received a $50,000 fine for their remarks. Oubre signed a $2.9 million, one-year deal with the Sixers before the season, meaning he’ll give the NBA 1.7% of his yearly salary. Nurse will give the NBA .6% of his salary.
Philadelphia is mired in a playoff race looking to catch up with the seven-seed Miami Heat in time for the Play-In Tournament. If the season ended today, they would be the eighth seed, playing against the nine-seed Chicago Bulls. The loss will not help their chances of hoping to take a more dominant position in the Play-In.
Los Angeles is in a very comfortable position, as they are a four-seed in the highly competitive West. George, Leonard, and the Clippers are in the driver’s seat to launch an exciting postseason run.
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