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Luka Doncic explains ejection amid worrying trend
The Los Angeles Lakers were up 108-107 with 7:40 left in the fourth quarter when Luka Doncic was ejected from Tuesday's loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Per the NBA's pool report, the Lakers guard was ejected for two technical fouls for using "profanity" and "vulgar language" at a game official. However, Doncic revealed after the game that he was trash-talking a fan at courtside when he was T'd up for the second time.
"If [a fan] is going to talk, I'm going to talk back, like always," Doncic said. "That had nothing to do with the ref. So, I didn't really understand. It was a tough [loss]. We were right there, we fought the whole game...It was tough to see this kind of situation happen. That's on me, too, I can't let my team down like that."
The fan in question, Jeremy Price, confirmed to ESPN's Dave McMenamin that he engaged in a back-and-forth with Doncic leading to the latter's ejection. Price also noted he had a similar run-in with Doncic when the Dallas Mavericks faced the Thunder in last year's playoffs.
Luka Doncic on his ejection: pic.twitter.com/Wn5VTSszhE
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) April 9, 2025
Technically, the refs got it wrong. Doncic shouldn't have been ejected for jawing with fans, who routinely cross the line with their taunting. That said, the Slovenian has a notorious history of getting T'd up.
The 26-year-old is tied for the fourth-most technical fouls this season with 14, a year after he led the league with 19. He was tied for third in 2022-23 and second in 2021-22 and 2020-21. Since he entered the league in 2019, Doncic has picked up a whopping 103 technical fouls in the regular season, ranking second behind only Draymond Green (114) and ahead of Rockets' renowned troublemaker Dillion Brooks (84).
While it's admirable for Doncic to admit he let his team down on Tuesday, he must be the bigger man rather than taking "the bait" of unruly fans and succumbing to his emotions. En route to last year's NBA Finals, he lost his cool on several occasions that nearly got him tossed, but the refs showed restraint due to the magnitude of the moment.
He was also heard vulgarly insulting a fan after the Mavericks beat the Timberwolves in the playoffs. Earlier in the season, he got into a heated exchange with a Suns fan, who was tossed, but the latter incident could have easily ended with Doncic's ejection.
Doncic is becoming an easy target for fans, players and coaches alike to "bait" into a moment of weakness. The Lakers had better hope that he doesn't succumb in the upcoming playoffs.
More must-reads:
- Lakers player makes accusation about ref who ejected Luka Doncic
- Celtics' moves suggest new guard will be traded — eventually
- The 'Most 30-point games in NBA history' quiz
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