Denver Nuggets player Jamal Murray will be fined $100,000 (but not suspended) after tossing a hot pack and towel from the bench during his team’s 106-80 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The news about Murray was initially reported by Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic, who noted that the player evaded suspension.
With about five minutes left in the second quarter, cameras spotted Murray, who was on the bench, throwing a towel at crew chief Marc Davis’ heels as he officiated live action. The towel was hastily recovered before Davis could notice or tread on it.
A few players later, cameras filmed the guard throwing a hot pack onto the court, with the activity at the basket closest to him:
Murray did not receive a foul for either action, which was due to Davis’s attention to the game on the court.
“I was the lead official, and I didn’t notice it was on the floor or where it came from until [Karl-Anthony] Towns scored,” Davis stated in the pool report on the heat pack. “We were unaware it had originated from the bench. If we had known it came from the bench, we could have examined it using the hostile act trigger. “The penalty would have been a technical foul.”
Murray has struggled in this series, averaging only 12.5 points through two games. He departed without speaking with reporters.
Denver is currently down 2-0 in the best-of-seven series, which moves to Minneapolis for Games 3 and 4. Game 3 will take place on Friday at 9:30 p.m. ET.