Jazz fined $500K by NBA for 'conduct detrimental to the league,' but why target Utah?

SALT LAKE CITY — Adam Silver and the NBA did not like the Utah Jazz resting its star players in the fourth quarter last week, even in a game the team won.

The NBA fined Utah $500,000 for "conduct detrimental to the league" Thursday night in relation to the team's recent games against the Orlando Magic on Feb. 7 and Miami Heat on Feb. 9, in which Will Hardy sat Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. in the fourth quarter of both games.

The NBA also fined the Indiana Pacers $100,000 for sitting multiple players against the Jazz on Feb. 3. The NBA said it investigated and determined that Pascal Siakam and two other starters could have played under the medical standard in the league policy.

Jackson was ruled out for the season on Thursday after a growth was discovered in his left knee. The growth — a pigmented villonodular synovitis — was discovered by an MRI during his physical as part of his trade to Utah, and it would require surgery to prevent any future harm.

When asked Hardy had any thoughts about the organization's fine, he simply said, "No."

"I sat Lauri because he was on a minutes restriction," Hardy said. "If our medical team puts a minutes restriction on Lauri, I'll try to keep Lauri healthy."

Earlier in the week, Utah's strategy of "tanking" drew ire and criticism from media members across the country, most notably ESPN's Bobby Marks, who said what the Jazz were doing is, "messing around with the integrity of the NBA."

Jazz owner Ryan Smith disputed Marks' claims in a post on social media platform X, saying: "Hey Bobby… maybe sit this one out. You have no clue what paying this is like and your amnesia this week is comical."

The problem is Utah has not been the only team pulling players from its lineup this season (or in seasons past) in a speculated effort to tank for a better spot in the upcoming draft of a star-studded class.

The management and lineup choices from teams such Washington, Brooklyn, and even Sacramento (which was in full effect in Wednesday's game against the Jazz), show that what the Jazz did is not all that different than other teams around the NBA.

The Kings were missing six key rotational players in the team's loss to the Jazz Wednesday, and the Wizards have yet to see Trae Young make his team debut after being acquired from the Hawks on Jan. 9.

Washington traded for Dallas big man Anthony Davis ahead of the trade deadline, but he has dealt with a multitude of injuries this season and has not been officially ruled out through the end of the season.

Plenty of other teams that aren't currently in the playoff picture have held out their best players as they reportedly recover from injuries and may be doing it in a way to manipulate lineups.

It appears the Jazz are being punished after it made a trade to signal the end of the team's rebuild, and for its decision to rest starters in the fourth quarter of a game the team won.

The current top two seeds in the Western conference built their team by "tanking" and getting lucky in the NBA draft lottery. The Oklahoma City Thunder, who has a vested interest in Utah's draft pick this year, rolled out lineups with G League level players as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sat on the bench.

The San Antonio Spurs were able to leap ahead in the NBA draft lottery to select generational talent Victor Wembanyama.

Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green said on his podcast Thursday: "Utah has to stay within the top eight or their pick goes to Oklahoma City. So Sam Presti's livid at what Utah is doing. Only problem with that is Sam Presti just won a championship last year doing what Utah is doing. It ain't so fun when the rabbit got the gun."

Brian Windhorst appeared on ESPN's "First Take" on Friday and addressed the "tanking" around the NBA.

"I'm giving the tankers a pass. ... They're incentivized to do this," he said. 'Therefore, I am determining that these are good people who are good at their jobs having to make bad decisions."

What the Jazz choose to do for the remainder of the season will likely be determined by what has the best long-term outcome for the organization. For small market teams, building through the draft and making calculated trades is the clear path to becoming a contender in today's NBA.

The small sample size of what Jackson showed with his front court partner Markkanen and the emergence of Keyonte George this season should give Utah fans hope for next season, even if it means enduring the rest of this one in what appears the end of the organization's rebuild efforts.

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