It's been a frustrating season for the Phoenix Suns, to say the least, and in Thursday's 116-88 loss to the Utah Jazz, it appears that Jared Dudley and Marquese Chriss let it get the best of them.
In the third quarter, Chriss fell to the ground on a play where no foul was called. Dudley apparently took exception and committed a hard foul on Jazz guard Ricky Rubio. When Rubio got up to defend himself, Chriss came over and shoved Rubio into the referee. Then the expected chaos ensued.
Dudley and Chriss were both ejected following the altercation, and on Saturday the NBA reportedly fined both players $25,000.
The NBA has fined Phoenix forwards Marquese Chriss and Jared Dudley $25,000 each for roles in altercation against Utah on Thursday night, league sources tell Yahoo.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 17, 2018
The Suns have been one of the worst teams in the NBA for the past three seasons, and all the losing has to start to wear on players eventually. But that's never an excuse to go after opposing players, particularly when the replay shows that there was nothing dirty about the way Chriss went down.
On the plus side, Phoenix has set itself up nicely to get a high lottery selection in what should be a top-heavy NBA Draft.
