The NBA said on Tuesday that guard Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggets had been fined $100,000 but had not been suspended for “throwing multiple objects in the direction of a game official during live play.”
Late in the second quarter of Denver’s 106-80 loss to Minnesota, Murray threw a towel and a hot pack onto the court, giving the Timberwolves a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinal series that moves to Minneapolis this weekend.
The Nuggets trailed by 28 points just before halftime, and they were miffed about the refereeing.
TNT replays of Murray sitting at the end of Denver’s bench and tossing the hot pack into the court attracted the most attention. Just before Karl-Anthony Towns of Minnesota made a layup with 4:41 remaining in the second quarter, it skidded across the floor as players fought for position in the lane.
The fans was warned not to throw any objects onto the field by the public address announcer as Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope grabbed and threw the heat pack away.
When questioned about it after the game, Nuggets coach Michael Malone backed down, claiming he was unaware that his point guard had been the offender. Murray exited the arena without speaking to reporters.
On Tuesday, the Nuggets were off. They will be available again following practice on Wednesday.
Murray was seen flinging a towel in Davis’ way a few seconds before he hurled the hot pack onto the court. Someone on the sidelines instantly got up and took off the towel after it landed at Davis’ heels. Davis was blind to it.
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