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Several players were fined for their actions during a brief altercation in a 126-119 win by the Utah Jazz over the Detroit Pistons on Thursday.
Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson received a $35,000 fine by the NBA for his involvement and for throwing his headband into the stands. Pistons rookie Ron Holland was also fined $25,000 after squaring up with Clarkson, although no punches were thrown.
Pistons center Paul Reed was hit with a $15,000 fine for initiating the scuffle.
Clarkson and Holland were both ejected during the game, while Reed received a technical foul.
Utah and Detroit combined to finish the game with seven technical fouls, as Jazz head coach Will Hardy acknowledged the intense environment throughout the game.
“It was super physical, chippy, ugly, nasty,” Hardy said, per SI.com’s Jared Koch. “There’s turnovers. There’s fouls. There’s fights. There’s a level of tension in the game and in the arena that we really haven’t seen this year. And Detroit is an incredibly hard-playing team. They’re really physical, and I think they sort of test your emotional stability.”
The Jazz led by 12 at the time of the altercation. The Pistons were able to cut the deficit to five points with just under two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but they weren’t able to get any closer before Utah pulled away.
Clarkson finished the game with three points and five assists while shooting 1-6 from the field and has shown the willingness to square up with opponents in the past.
He also has some familiarity with the other action that resulted in his fine, as he was fined $15,000 for tossing his headband into the stands in Dec. 2022.
Holland, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft, has shown promise throughout his rookie season. He’s also picked up his fair share of technical fouls, ranking No. 16 among all players with four through his first 28 games.
The Pistons and Jazz will face off again on March 3.
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