NBA fines Anthony Edwards $50K for exchange with fan

The NBA has fined Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards $50K for using inappropriate language and making an obscene gesture toward a fan, the league announced Tuesday in a press release.

The incident occurred midway through the third quarter in Game 1 of the Wolves’ series vs. the Lakers on Saturday.

A video clip circulated on social media showing Edwards responding to fans heckling center Rudy Gobert by reminding them of Gobert’s career earnings. The Wolves guard earned his fine in the last few seconds of that clip when he escalated the trash talk by chirping at a fan.

Edwards was fined several times by the league throughout the season for various transgressions, including repeatedly using profane language during media interviews. He was docked $320K for six separate incidents before the playoffs. That total doesn’t include the $242K he lost as a result of a one-game suspension or the smaller fines automatically assessed for each of his league-leading 17 technical fouls.

All that lost salary still represents a relative drop in the bucket for Edwards, who had a cap hit of $42.2M this season and is owed $202.4M over the next four years.