LOS ANGELES, (Reuters) – The National Basketball Association (NBA) fined Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson $35,000 on Monday for publicly criticizing game officials, the league said on their website (www.nba.com).
Jackson spoke out after the Lakers suffered a lopsided 100-81 defeat to the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.
Jackson was unhappy about the treatment of his forward Ron Artest, who was whistled for critical fouls and a double-technical foul while battling with San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili.
“On both replays we looked at, Ginobili hooks him and does this up and under move,” Jackson told the Los Angeles Times on Sunday. “Obviously the refs just didn’t want the contact at that time.”
