Normally, a player will “leak” they want to be traded so they don’t get hit with the fine.
Davis had his agent tell Woj he wanted out and the NBA was upset about that.
New Orleans Pelicans forward-center Anthony Davis has been fined $50,000 by the NBA for violating a collectively-bargained rule prohibiting players or their representatives from making public trade demands. The fine is for statements that were made by Davis’ agent, Rich Paul, in an intentional effort to undermine the contractual relationship between Davis and the Pelicans.
$50k is nothing to Davis, but don’t expect any more players to do public trade demands.