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Hornets guard LaMelo Ball is one of the most electrifying players in the NBA. While Ball has one of the league's most authentic personalities and is often an incredible quote, his lack of a filter sometimes gets him in trouble.
After Charlotte earned an impressive win over Milwaukee on Saturday, Ball used homophobic language when describing the Hornets' defensive game plan on superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo during the game's final play.
The league did not take kindly to Ball's choice of words and the 23-year-old was handed a $100,000 fine for his comments. Here is why the NBA league offices fined Ball for his postgame interview.
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Why did the NBA fine LaMelo Ball?
Ball was fined $100,000 for "making an offensive and derogatory comment in a postgame interview," the league announced Sunday.
During Ball's postgame interview, FanDuel Sports Network's Shannon Spake asked the guard about Charlotte's defense on Antetokounmpo to close the game. Ball's use of homophobic language came as he explained the Hornets' decision to force Antetokounmpo into a jump shot.
"On that last play, when he took the shot?" Ball said. "We loaded up — no homo — but that's what we wanted, put a hand up and lived with the result."
There is a precedent for the NBA assessing fines for the use of the same phrase. Nikola Jokic was fined $25,000 in 2018, Cam Thomas was fined $40,000 in 2023 and Roy Hibbert was fined $75,000 in 2013.
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