I thinks it’s safe to say that Larry Sanders doesn’t like referees, or at least the ones who’ve officiated the last two out of three Milwaukee Bucks games.
A few days ago we reported that the Bucks center was ejected in hilarious fashion after persistently arguing a foul call during a game Wednesday night against the Washington Wizards. Sanders, then followed that performance by getting ejected two nights later against the Miami Heat, and in story via the folks at Pro Basketball Talk, the league has given him a hefty fine for using disrespectful language towards the referees.
Larry Sanders of the Milwaukee Bucks has been fined $50,000 for “using a derogatory and offensive term and publicly criticizing the officials,” the league announced on Sunday via official release.
The incident occurred with 2:44 remaining the Bucks’ home loss to the Heat on Friday, when Sanders directed the language to the referees and was immediately ejected. Sanders further criticized the officiating during his postgame remarks.
It’s worth noting that whatever Sanders said, it must have been viewed as especially egregious by the league office, considering the amount of the fine. Usually, the standard dollar figure is $35,000 for something like this, and most recently, Serge Ibaka of the Thunder was fined just $25,000 for his hit to the groin on Blake Griffin.
I understand frustration with NBA officials being a Toronto Raptors fan, they’ve been especially bad this season it seems but Sanders has to understand that he won’t win this battle, more powerful men like Mark Cuban have tried and failed repeatedly. All you end up doing is coughing up money for David Stern and his minions petty cash jar.