NBA: Nick Nurse and Kelly Oubre Jr fined

Philadelphia Sixers coach Nick Nurse and fullback Kelly Oubre Jr were each fined $50,000 (around 46,300 euros) on Friday by the NBA for vehemently criticizing an arbitration decision during the defeat conceded in very end of the match on Wednesday. Nurse was fined for “aggressive pursuit and verbal violence towards referees”, while Oubre Jr was sanctioned for “verbal violence and obscene gesture towards referees”.

The incident occurred during the intense final seconds of a 108-107 home loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. Oubre Jr was rushing towards the basket when Clippers winger Paul George blocked his access to the basket illegally and the two players made contact, without a foul being called. Which triggered the ire of Nurse and Oubre which earned them their fine. Nurse's assistant coaches had to restrain him to prevent him from making his point to the referees even more vehemently.

For his part, Oubre had to be removed after making a gesture towards the three officials, but he later apologized for losing his cool in the heat of the moment. During the post-match conference, Nurse simply said: “I thought there was enough contact for a foul to be called. That’s how it happens sometimes.”

After the game, referee team delegate Kevin Scott said a video review showed a foul should have been called against George and free throws awarded to the Philadelphia back with a chance to win the game less than a second from the buzzer.

The Sixers have been marking time since their flagship player, Joel Embiid, was injured at the end of January. Without the MVP of the 2022-23 regular season, the Pennsylvania franchise tumbled from third to eighth place in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 39 wins for 34 losses.