“Tanking” with consequences: The NBA has fined the Dallas Mavericks for “league-damaging behavior” and distortion of competition. As the league announced, the team around German national player Maximilian Kleber has to pay $750,000. In the most recent 112:115 against the Chicago Bulls, numerous regular players were not used.
The NBA saw this as a rule violation, the Mavericks would have accepted the defeat with their personnel decisions in order to increase the chance of keeping their own first-round pick in the upcoming draft. According to the league, the players used did not lose on purpose.
“The Dallas Mavericks’ decision to prevent key players from fully participating in a league game has undermined the integrity of our sport,” said Joe Dumars, NBA vice president and head of basketball operations.
The Mavericks missed the playoffs, they want to rebuild the team around Kleber and superstar Luka Doncic. With a win against the Bulls, Dallas would have kept his minimal chance of the play-in tournament. Head coach Jason Kidd had reported before the game that his bosses had “changed course”.
