Jalen Williams draws unusual fine from NBA over his clothing

Jalen Williams is heading to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in his NBA career but is doing so with a slightly lighter wallet at that.

The NBA announced on Monday that they are fining the Oklahoma City Thunder star forward Williams a sum of $25,000. The fine stems from clothing that Williams wore during his postgame media session on Sunday featuring profane language, the release adds.

Williams and the Thunder defeated the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of their second-round playoff series on Sunday. After the 125-93 victory at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, O.K., Williams donned a T-shirt that read, “F–k art, let’s dance.”

You can see a screenshot of the T-shirt that Williams wore at the link here.

Williams, a 2025 NBA All-Star, seemingly earned the right to a little bit of self-expression with his tremendous outing in Game 7. He finished with 24 points, five rebounds, and seven assists on 10/17 shooting, marking an impressive turnaround from a Game 6 stink-job that got Williams roasted whole over social media.

The NBA almost never fines players over their choice of clothing, no matter how utterly offensive to the eyes some guys can get with their outfits at times. The closest precedent would probably be the time that the league warned a player about his color of clothing on the sideline. But since Williams’ outfit after Sunday’s Game 7 featured actual uncensored profanity, the league deemed it to rise to the level of a finable offense.