Curry likely to face fine, not suspension, for tossing mouthpiece

MANILA, Philippines – Stephen Curry says he didn’t mean to hit a courtside observer when he chucked his mouthpiece after being hit with his sixth foul during Game 6 of the NBA Finals.

Curry, who scored 30 points in 35 minutes, fouled out and was ejected with 4:22 left to play in the fourth quarter. According to ESPN, the mouthpiece hit the son of a Cleveland Cavaliers minority owner, after which Curry apologized and the two shook hands. Still, Curry could only watch as the Cavs evened the series with a 115-101 win.

“I’ve thrown my mouthpiece before. I usually aim at the scorer’s table. I was off aim. Definitely didn’t mean to throw it at a fan,” Curry said on Thursday, June 16 (Friday Manila time), as quoted by ESPN.

League sources told ESPN and other sources that Curry would likely be fined but not suspended for the winner-take-all Game 7.

Steph Curry fouls out and throws his mouthguard at a fan….and then apologizes. What. pic.twitter.com/YHj1phUA4Q

— Complex Sports (@Complex_Sports) June 17, 2016

The incident was Curry’s first time to foul out since December of 2013, and his ejection was the first of his career. Warriors coach Steve Kerr disagreed strongly with some of the fouls Curry was called for, and supported his star player, claiming 3 of the plays were clean.

“He had every right to be upset. He’s the MVP of the league. He gets six fouls called on him; three of them were absolutely ridiculous,” Kerr said.

Still, Kerr gave credit to the Cavs, saying that their win was the product of hardwork, not rigging of the league as Curry’s wife Ayesha had claimed on Twitter before deleting the post.

“Let me be clear: We did not lose because of the officiating. They totally outplayed us, and Cleveland deserved to win,” said Kerr. Kerr could also find himself facing a fine for questioning the officiating, ESPN adds, with ref Jason Phillips being named specifically in the criticism.

Haslem and Curry situations different

Steph Curry’s ejection has drawn comparisons to Miami Heat Udonis Haslem, who was ejected during a 2006 NBA playoffs game against the Chicago Bulls for throwing his mouthpiece and subsequently suspended a game. The primary difference between Haslem’s situation and Curry’s is that the mouthguard was targeted for referee Joey Crawford, while it isn’t believed Curry had targeted the courtside spectator.

When asked about the possibility that Curry misses Game 7, Kerr told Sports Illustrated’s Ben Golliver: “I’m not concerned about that.” – Rappler.com