Raptors' Nick Nurse fined for throwing mask toward stands, directing profanity at refs
Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse has been fined $50,000 by the NBA for throwing his mask behind the scorer's table and toward the stands, and directing profanities at officials, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports.
Nurse was visibly frustrated after Toronto’s 115-112 loss to the Utah Jazz on Friday, specifically regarding the Jazz’s 41-14 advantage in free throws for the contest. It being the team’s seventh-straight loss didn’t make matters any better, either.
Why Nick Nurse gotta do his mask like that #Raptors pic.twitter.com/eHu5eOc8At
— burner (@mburnerm) March 20, 2021
“It just didn’t seem like they were going to let us win tonight,” Nurse said in his postgame press conference. “A lot of calls, man. Every trip, every possession was free throws.
“We looked twice as aggressive as we did to them. We were twice the aggressor, moving faster, cutting harder, charging in further, we were twice the aggressor.”
The month of March hasn’t treated Toronto very kindly as the team is still searching for its first win since the calendar flipped. Amid an uptick in trade rumours that includes red-hot scorer Norman Powell, Toronto also battled a COVID-19 outbreak that sidelined Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, Pat McCaw, OG Anunoby and Malachi Flynn due to the league’s COVID-protocols.
The Raptors will look to get back in the win column on Sunday against the 15-25 Cleveland Cavaliers.
