Game 5 between the Suns and Nuggets will, in fact, be played at full strength, as Nikola Jokic will not face a suspension for his altercation with Suns owner Mat Ishbia during Game 4 of Denver’s loss in Phoenix.
After running over to grab the ball that fell into Ishbia’s lap, the two tussled over it briefly before it popped into the row behind, leading to Jokic giving Ishbia a little shove that the Suns owner sold with a flop into his seat. Jokic was assessed a technical and after the game was not happy with that outcome, believing Ishbia should’ve been kicked out for trying to influence the game by withholding the ball. Ishbia issued his first statement on Monday about the incident, saying he has lots of respect for Jokic and hoping the league won’t suspend or fine him.
On Monday evening, word broke that the league would be half listening to Ishbia’s request, as Jokic would not be suspended for Game 5 back in Denver, but would be getting a $25,000 fine.
The following was released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/uMB9t5nvi4
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 8, 2023
Jokic certainly won’t be happy about the fine considering he certainly didn’t appear to feel he did anything wrong in the incident, noting that Ishbia initiated the contact and wouldn’t give up the ball. That said, given the officials deemed it a purposeful shove, it’s not surprising to see him face some form of further punishment, but it’s just good that it won’t cost him a game, as that would’ve put a serious damper on the series (and only created more controversy than already existed).