NBA Hits New Orleans Pelicans Executive with Massive Fine

David Griffin, the Vice President of Basketball Operations for the New Orleans Pelicans is a little bit lighter in the pockets after the NBA fined him $50,000 for "public criticism of officiating and comments detrimental to the NBA".

Griffin was standing up for his best player and became sick and tired of seeing Zion Williamson getting hacked and whacked during games with limited calls. Williamson was recently fouled so hard it broke his left ring finger and now the star is out indefinitely. Griffin had this to say:

I'm really frustrated because this was avoidable. We told the NBA through every means available to us, through sending in film, through speaking to everybody in the officials' department and everybody in basketball operations, that the way they were officiating Zion was going to get him injured. Quite frankly, he's injured now because of the open season there's been on Zion Williamson in the paint. He's been absolutely mauled in the paint on a regular basis, to the point that other players have said to him, 'I'm going to keep doing this to you because they don't call it.

It's Williamson's sophomore season and his team wants him to start getting the calls. The former first overall pick is averaging 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 dimes per game, but it appears his season is over.