A huge sigh of relief for the LakeShow.
Luka Dončić isn’t going anywhere after the Los Angeles Lakers caught a massive break.
The NBA league office announced on Sunday that Dončić’s 16th technical foul, which spares the superstar an automatic one-game suspension at the worst possible time of the season.
Drama boiled over during the third quarter of the Lakers’ 105-104 nail-biter over the Magic on Saturday. Dončić and Orlando big man Goga Bitadze were slapped with double technicals after a heated exchange at the charity stripe. That whistle would have parked Luka for Monday’s matchup.
Dončić claims this wasn’t just routine trash talk.
According to the Lakers star, Bitadze took it to a dark place and allegedly insulted his family in Serbia.
“He said at the free throw [line] he would f**k my whole family,” Dončić told reporters. “At some point, I just can’t stand it. I got to stand up for myself.”
Bitadze tried to flip the drama against Dončić, calling him the aggressor.
After reviewing the tape, league officials ruled the spat didn’t warrant a season-altering suspension.
It’s a huge sigh of relief for the LakeShow.
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Dončić shoots under Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Los Angeles has ripped off nine straight wins.
Dončić has been the engine, averaging a staggering 40 points per night during the streak. Losing him for Monday’s tilt with the Pistons would have been a self-inflicted wound for a team finally looking like a Western Conference powerhouse.
This marks the third time in his career he’s had a suspension-triggering 16th technical overturned.
Luka escaped the principal’s office this time, but he’s still walking a tightrope. He remains at 15 technicals. One more outburst results in a mandatory seat on the bench and a $5,000 fine.
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