After the Mavericks opted to rest five players during their penultimate game of the season last night, the NBA has announced today that it will be looking into Dallas’ conduct, Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press reports.
“The NBA commenced an investigation today into the facts and circumstances surrounding the Dallas Mavericks roster decisions and game conduct with respect to last night’s Chicago Bulls-Mavericks game, including the motivations behind those actions,” league spokesman Mike Bass said.
On Friday against the Bulls, Dallas sat All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving and key role players Tim Hardaway Jr., Josh Green, Maxi Kleber and Christian Wood. The Mavericks entered that game tied with Chicago for the league’s 10th-worst record. All-Star guard Luka Doncic, meanwhile, played in just the game’s first quarter before exiting a minute into the second quarter.
By benefit of losing the contest 115-112, Dallas has been eliminated from a potential play-in berth.
Head coach Jason Kidd revealed after the game that he would sit Doncic and Irving again for Sunday’s season finale, and added that other key role players would probably also be shelved. Dallas would possess sole ownership of the 10th-worst record in the NBA if the team loses its last game.
The Mavericks owe a top-10 protected draft pick to the Knicks, and sitting these key players gives them a better chance of retaining their own first rounder this year.
It is fascinating that the NBA is going after Dallas specifically. The Bulls in the same game sat healthy starters DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Patrick Beverley, having locked up the East’s tenth seed and a play-in berth, and a handful of other play-in contenders haven’t exactly been going all-out to secure playoff appearances in recent weeks.
This was an awful move. Bad look for the entire league. If I am Luka I am requesting a trade today. Mark Cuban should be fined 2MM and force to sell the team
Mark Cuban is insufferable
Mark from Cuba should of been out of the league years ago…
Luka should of been asking out the week of the Kyrie trade…
Lakers are likely to be 6th seed if Suns don’t rest key players tomorrow.
Will the Suns rest key players against Clippers tomorrow?
You are such a delusional laker homer. “ lakers are the deepest team in the nba”… ohh my… there is nothing worth saying to that comment you left on another thread.
Could the league be getting involved because of what Kidd said about him and the players wanting to go for the playoffs, but the orders coming from ownership/GM.
Like the Bulls players and coach are onboard with not risking injury in a meaningless game, since they are about to play in games that matter. Its like 60% of the league tomorrow will be “who he play for” teams.
The Bulls resting players is meaningless…
They had no sporting reason to play…
The Mavs had sporting reasons to play…
Well, there’s that issue that the fans are paying full prices and getting 2nd or 3rd string value. Oh…that’s right, it’s ok to ignore the sole reason why the NBA exists, the fans.
Fans of the Bulls will want better chances of the team doing well in the playoffs…
Fans of the Mavs… Well they’re screwed anyway…
Todo es negocio a la liga lo que quiere imponer sanciones; deberia sancionar a todos los sotaneros.
It’s not that fascinating that the Bulls were resting players. They were guaranteed to play early next week on the road. The Mavs purposely tried to avoid the play-in to protect a draft pick. That was exactly the point of these play-in games. Teams were expected to have more motivation to avoid tanking. It’s similar to signs on the highway where the speed limit was raised but penalties were doubled for exceeding the new speed limit.
“It is fascinating that the NBA is going after Dallas specifically, as the Bulls in the same game sat healthy starters DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Patrick Beverley.”
Not really, though. The Bulls are locked into the 10th seed, so it only makes sense to rest players. On the contrary, Dallas was still alive for the play-in
Exactly. One thing has nothing to do with another.
BS
The league should investigate itself for incentivising this sort of behavior.
The Bulls?
What were they going to get from a win?
There was zero sporting reason for the Bulls to risk injury…
The Mavs could of changed their playoff hopes but chose not to…
Big difference…
BS
So, playing the entire season not to win is cool. Trading good players for scrubs and picks at the deadline, then “shutting down” star players with a month to go also cool, but throwing in the towel the final 2 games to avoid the play(offs)in, not cool, and considered tanking. Got it.
The NBA tolerates tanking as long as it’s not too obvious. But this was way too obvious. There will be a sanction for sure, let’s see of what kind (probably a fine, but losing a second rounder is not out of the question either).
Tanking, Lamebron and China are the reasons I have not watched an NBA game for over 2 years.
But you still take the time out of your busy life to comment here on the NBA? Whatever, bro. ..
Cuban will get fined about a million. he’ll complain, but pay it and life will move on.
if you wanna stop the purposeful tanking then strip draft picks of guilty teams.
Miami rested all their star players in a must win game to qualify for the playoffs… seems that the NBA has some sort of vendetta with MR Cuban & Dallas, sad really, SMH!
The NBA is run by clowns, they let the league do whatever it wants all season, players rest back to backs even with that not showing actual help in preventing injuries, the Houston Rockets are a pathetic joke and they aren’t investigated for keeping an incompetent coach for multiple years, not even a Dallas fan but when will this league take responsibility for promoting these exact practices, Adam Silver is such a tape measure, that’s a specific tool
The NBA needs to revisit the lottery system again. The tanking used to be limited to the worst teams at the very bottom of the league. The way the system is now they have teams on the edge of making the play-in deciding to tank at the end for the small chance at getting that top pick.
Dallas has just a 3% chance to get the first pick
Dallas is about keeping their pick, not the chances of it going number 1…
There is a higher chance their pick will go to NY than they move up…
April fools was last week right ?
Every team is sitting players when there is no challenge but Dallas shutdowned Morris (14pts in 5mn) and a really good McGee & Hardy after a 18pts lead… If Bulls would have lost yesterday Dallas would have Lost their 1st pick …
Their punishment should be the #11 pick.
It will be a Knicks pick then …
That’s the point.
Gonna have a hard time proving that it wasn’t a strategy to play the younger guys, give them some minutes, and rest the often injured, but playing starters.
This is only happening if the Knicks complained.
Gonna be really hard to prove that it was intentional tanking
What kind of non-tanking team “plays the younger guys” when a play-in spot is on the line?
Being a play-in and not atleast #6 definitely takes the significance away from #7, #8, #9, and #10. In my opinion anyway.
It will be hard to prove that the starters or key players weren’t nursing injury in a meaningless game to the Mavericks that they valued player treatment over the final score, and a play-in berth
It may matter to the NBA, but is it required for a team to be all-in on an NBA gimmick as part of their franchise operations and team building strategy?
I think it’s a reach, even under the rules, and policies of the NBA. Which the NBA can change, and rule on in any way they want. Its not exactly a lawful proceeding…
I expect the NBA to collect as large of a fine as they think they can leverage. Doubt this is to make an example for the rest of the league. I don’t think its quite that serious
I don’t think it’s a reach to expect a team to try when the postseason is, quite literally, on the line.
Like it or not, the play-in is still part of the postseason
I think you’re right, but if you are, then Blazera, Magic, Pacers, and other teams should also have some splainin’ to do
After the Brunson case Cuban does not want the Knicks to get that juicy #11 …
A. silver is straight garbage. Pretending like this is the only time it’s happened. Straight up nonsense. I’m all for holding teams accountable, but cherry picking when you care and don’t is straight dictatorship. Typical A. silver
All El Don does is cry.
Mavericks got worse when they acquired Irving lol.
That’s what happens when you have two ball hogs with poor defense.
Strip their 1st round pick if they get to keep it. Plain and simple, the same scenario doesn’t happen again
What about the teams that were doing it all yesterday? Are you going to strip their firsts as well or just hypocritically pick and choose?
Most of these posts don’t have anything to do with balling. I doubt most of you even care about the NBA. By the nonsense you post.
Ask yourself. Why would the Mavs want to be in the play-in. What would Mavs fans rather have. At best a loss in first rd. Or the 10th pick in the draft. Means next yr they are that much better. Sign Kyrie and come back stronger next yr. This is a basketball move. It’s the smart move. It’s the right business and basketball move. Makes no sense to be last team in playoffs. That 10th pick is more valuable.
Every yr there comes a time for every lottery team. That you have to play for next yr. Means you play your bench. And rest your best for next yr. You can call it tanking. But in reality it’s playing for next yr. If your present Suxx. Then you play for next yr. It’s what should happen every yr. It’s not that you tell your team to lose. These are NBA players. All trying to make a name for themselves. Nothing wrong with playing for next yr. Get over it ……..
Knicks have Fleeced Mavs long enough. We’ll take a 2024 #1 pick instead.
This from the truest Knick fan ever ……
This is the correct response to all of the above posters.
Don’t agree with Al most of time, but he’s correct here.
I don’t see how they investigate Dallas and not teams like Utah and Indiana. Utah has held out Markkanen for a week now with a bogus hand injury. Indiana has held out Haliburton for two weeks with a bogus knee injury. Dallas’ mistake was not doing it sooner I guess.
Phenomena like load management symbolize the natural evolution of closed leagues, serving exclusively the financial welfare of its oligarch owners. Sporting competition goes out the window and is replaced by pure profit mongering. And the fans get fleeced for an inferior product.
They have been doing this since the spurs and lebron made this trend popular
If every game matters, then you need to investigate every team. Honestly who cares except Knicks fans? It’s only a “problem” bc it’s a traded pick with protections. No one would care if they owned their 1st outright.