Guard Marcus Smart has been a key role player for the Los Angeles Lakers this season. His defense, secondary ball-handling and facilitating and overall resourcefulness have helped them get off to a 19-7 start and keep pace with almost every elite team in the NBA.
But despite his steady, veteran presence, he isn’t immune to showing his frustration. As the first half of Thursday’s game against the Utah Jazz ended, he made an obscene gesture at one of the referees working the contest. As a result, he was given a technical foul.
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Smart has also been fined as a result of that gesture, per ESPN.
“Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart was fined $35,000 for making an obscene gesture toward a game official at halftime of L.A.’s 143-135 win over the Utah Jazz on Thursday, the league announced Saturday,” wrote Dave McMenamin.
The Lakers fell behind by 10 points early in the second quarter, but they fought back. They took the lead early in the fourth quarter and built a 12-point lead, and they held off a Utah rally in the final minutes to earn a 143-135 victory.
Smart was a sizable key in that victory with 17 points on 6-of-11 field-goal shooting and 5-of-9 from 3-point range. Three of his 3-pointers came in the fourth quarter as Los Angeles started to build a cushion.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers guard Marcus Smart has been fined by the NBA
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