NBA Fines Bucks Co-Owner Marc Lasry $25K For Violating Tampering Rules With Anthony Davis Comments

Dan Duangdao
2 Min Read
Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

When Anthony Davis requested a trade from the New Orleans Pelicans through agent Rich Paul, the NBA’s tampering rules became a major discussion once again.

Prior to the 2018-19 NBA season, Davis joined Klutch Sports Group, which famously represents LeBron James. And when James publicly stated he wanted to play with Davis and later double-downed on his comments amid tampering allegations, the league sent a memo reminding players and teams.

Since president of basketball operations Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka took over the Los Angeles Lakers front office, they have been fined twice for tampering in regards to their Paul George and Giannis Antetokounmpo commennts. While there have been no incidents, other teams have mentioned players without any fines.

However, with the Milwaukee Bucks on Davis’ short list of preferred destinations, co-owner Marc Lasry was fined for his recent comments, according to Malika Andrews of ESPN:

The unfortunate truth for teams like the Pelicans is tampering exists. As players are starting to understand they have control over their careers, it was not surprising for Davis to request a trade with the Lakers and New York Knicks as his preferred destination.

As Johnson believes the Pelicans did not act in good faith during trade discussions, New Orleans had 6.5 seasons to build a championship contender and they did not. While Davis ultimately was not traded, the Pelicans will likely trade him at some point or lose him for nothing in 2020 free agency.

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Dan Duangdao was the managing editor at Lakers Nation (2013-16, 2018-20). He is currently the founder at LA Sports Media, Lake Show, Raiders Nation, Rams Nation, Kings Nation, Galaxy Nation, and MMA Rumors. Born and raised in Southern California and a lifelong Los Angeles sports and mixed martial arts fan, his first NBA game was Kobe Bryant and the Lakers against the Golden State Warriors with Michael Jordan in attendance during the 1998-99 NBA season. He was previously a contributor at HOOPSWORLD (now Basketball Insiders) and an NBA editor at ClutchPoints. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: @DanDuangdao.