Trail Blazers C Jusuf Nurkić fined $40K for confronting fan, throwing phone
It's been a rough season for the Portland Trail Blazers. Not only is the team on the cusp of seeing their streak of eight consecutive seasons of making the playoffs come to an end, but superstar point guard Damian Lillard was recently ruled out for the remainder of the campaign.
On Sunday, Portland was blown out by the lowly Indiana Pacers by 31 points and starting center Jusuf Nurkić -- who has missed the last 12 games with a foot injury -- got caught in a heated exchange with a fan courtside. The NBA announced on Tuesday that the back-and-forth has led to a $40,000 fine for the big man.
Nurkić has averaged 15.0 points, a career-high 11.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game over 56 contests this season. The 27-year-old has also posted a career-best 53.5% field goal percentage.
He is in his fifth full season with the Trail Blazers after spending the first two-plus campaigns with the Denver Nuggets. Nurkić was traded from Denver to Portland in February 2017 with a first-round pick in exchange for Mason Plumlee, cash considerations and a 2018 second-round pick.
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