The Dallas Mavericks have been fined $750,000 by the NBA for conduct detrimental to the league. The NBA announced the fine in a statement on Friday. The Mavs were fined for sitting several key players ahead of an April 7 matchup with the Chicago Bulls that ended their playoff aspirations.
The NBA also cited the Mavs' public statements and ascertained that the Mavs sat players with the goal of retaining their first-round draft pick.
The NBA did make sure to mention that the players who did play did so with no intention of losing.
The Mavs' loss to the Bulls gave them an 80% chance of keeping their draft pick this year instead of it going to the New York Knicks, who own the pick if it falls outside of the top 10.
This is the second time the Mavs have been fined for tanking-related reasons in six years. Owner Mark Cuban was fined for comments he made about tanking on a podcast with Julius Erving in 2018.
NBA Executive Vice President and Head of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars said the Mavs' actions failed their fans and the NBA.
