The NBA has fined Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob $500,000 for recent comments made on a podcast that violate the league’s rules on discussing collective bargaining, ESPN reported Wednesday.
While making an appearance on the Point Forward Podcast, hosted by Andre Iguodala and Evan Turner, Lacob called the NBA’s luxury tax structure "very unfair", lamenting the extra costs of having the league’s highest payroll.
This past season, the Warriors paid Stephen Curry $48million, Klay Thompson $40m, Andrew Wiggins $33m, Draymond Green $25m, and former second overall pick James Wiseman $9m, totalling $155m from just five of their 15 roster spots. The NBA's 'soft cap' – meaning the salary cap that can be exceeded to re-sign a team's current players – was set at $112m for 2021-22, and will rise to $122m for the upcoming season.
"The truth is, we're only $40 million more than the luxury tax. Now, that's not small but it's not a massive number," Lacob said. "We're $200 million over in total because most of that is this incredible penal luxury tax. And what I consider to be unfair and I'm going to say it on this podcast, and I hope it gets back to whoever is listening.
"Obviously, it's self-serving for me to say this, but I think it's a very unfair system because our team is built by... all [of our] top eight players are all drafted by this team."
Lacob said that some have classified the Warriors’ 2022 championship a "checkbook win."
According to ESPN, the Warriors paid $69 million in luxury tax in 2020-21, $170 million in 2021-22 and are projected to pay $181 million in 2022-23.
Jamaica’s men successfully navigate qualifying round at FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup in Puerto Rico
Jamaica’s Men’s 3x3 Basketball team successfully navigated Thursday’s qualifying round at the FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Drawn in qualifying group B alongside Mexico and Guatemala, they finished with a record of 1-1 to advance.
They lost 13-22 to Mexico before rebounding with a 21-13 win over Guatemala.
They will take on the USA and Argentina in Pool A on Saturday.
Magic savour 'special' Washington triumph after record-equalling ninth straight win
Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero and coach Jamahl Mosley both lauded a "special" night for the team as they equalled the franchise's record winning run by overcoming the Washington Wizards.
Banchero finished with 28 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, while Franz Wagner had a game-high 31 points as Orlando beat Washington for the second time in two days on Friday, clinching a 130-125 success at Amway Center.
The victory was Orlando's ninth in a row, taking them to 14-5 for the season and matching their longest ever streak, with the team having previously won nine straight in 1994, 2001 and 2010-11.
Orlando are one of just two NBA franchises – along with the Indiana Pacers – to never enjoy a double-digit winning run, but they have the chance to do so for the first time when they visit the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.
"It's pretty special," Banchero said of the team's run, which began with the first of back-to-back road wins over the Chicago Bulls on November 15.
"Eventually I think a loss is going to come, but we just want to keep it rolling for as long as we can.
"But you're not surprised when you do something like this because we've got great chemistry and we play really well together."
Orlando are up to second in the Eastern Conference, with only the 15-4 Boston Celtics and the 14-4 Minnesota Timberwolves boasting better records across the entire league.
Head coach Mosley said: "It's a big time for this group, but more importantly, I think it's a big time for the fans and the organisation.
"There's an energy, there's a vibe, a buzz about this group, and our guys are doing a good job of embracing it, not getting too high or too low but being able to register that this is something special."
Jamaica women through to quarterfinals of FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup in Puerto Rico
Jamaica’s women’s basketball team has advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2023 FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The Jamaicans got through qualifying on Thursday’s opening day with a pair of dominant wins over Nicaragua (21-1) and the Cayman Islands (22-3), respectively, while suffering a narrow 14-22 defeat to Colombia in between those games.
Friday saw them go 1-1 in Pool D play, losing to Puerto Rico 14-16 in overtime before beating Mexico 16-14, to advance to the quarterfinals.
They will tackle Brazil in the quarters on Saturday afternoon.
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