NBA Penalties LA Clippers for Breaking Injury Reporting Regulations
The LA Clippers will pay a $25,000 fine to the NBA on Friday for their violation of the league’s injury report policy. Paul George, Russell Westbrook, and Norman Powell were all out of the Clippers’ regular season finale against the Houston Rockets due to injuries, and none of them saw the court. Despite sitting nearly all of their regular rotation players, the Clippers only listed James Harden and Kawhi Leonard as injuries.
The NBA said the following when it announced the fine:
“The LA Clippers have been fined $25,000 by the NBA for breaking league injury reporting regulations, the league announced today. Prior to their April 14 game against the Houston Rockets, the Clippers did not accurately disclose Paul George’s, Norman Powell’s, and Russell Westbrook’s availability. None of the three players was listed as out due to rest or injury on the team’s injury report, nor did any of them participate.”
The Clippers’ decision to omit those three players from the injury report seemed illogical given that it was obvious they would not be participating. Additionally, since this was a pointless match for both teams, there was no competitive advantage at stake.
The Clippers are the most recent team to incur a fine as a result of the NBA’s strict enforcement of injury report policies this season.