1 week Ago By USA TODAY Sports
Luka Doncic was ejected during the fourth quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers ' 136-120 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night at Paycom Center after picking up his second technical foul. The Lakers were leading 108-107 with 7:40 remaining when Doncic appeared to respond to a fan courtside. Doncic picked up his first technical foul with 4:02 left in the third quarter.
"It was a weird couple of minutes after that, starting with the ejection," Lakers star LeBron James told reporters . "I don't know why the ref was taking it personal. He had already given Luka one (technical) and Luka knew that.
"Luka was going back and forth at that time with a fan sitting courtside. ..
. The ref took it upon himself to think that it was vs. him, whatever the case may be.
" Doncic now has 14 technical fouls on the season, putting him two away from receiving a one-game suspension. Crew chief Tony Brothers told pool reporter Cliff Brunt of the Associated Press that Doncic received his first technical foul after the Lakers guard "directed profanity at a game official." For the second technical, Doncic "looked directly at an official and used vulgar language.
" Whether Doncic was speaking to the official or not, he has quite the history with Thunder fans, going back to last season's Western Conference semifinals , when he led the Mavericks to a 4-2 series win against OKC. "I love it," Doncic said last year of playing in OKC. "When they chant, 'Luka sucks,' it gets me going.
" OKC (65-14) will close out the regular season with a three-game road trip, starting Wednesday night at Phoenix. Los Angeles (48-31) will visit the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, marking Doncic's first trip back to American Airlines Center since February's shocking Lakers-Mavericks trade . Luka Doncic stats for Lakers vs Thunder This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Luka Doncic ejected from Lakers-Thunder game.
