Thibodeau questioned officiating after apparent pro-Heat decisions.
Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau has been fined $35,000 for comments he made after his team’s 104-94 defeat in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semi-finals clash with the Miami Heat.
The Bulls now trail the defending champions 2-1 after the loss at the United Center on Friday night, but the fiery coach was furious with some of the calls he witnessed.
“I see how things are going, I watch very closely. We’re not going to get calls, that’s reality,” he said after Game 3 according to ESPN.
The Bulls coach had no comment following the news he had been fined, stating that he was only focused on getting things right for Game 4 on Monday night.
However, one of the incidents that left him infuriated at the United Center last time out was the coming together of LeBron James and Nazr Mohammed. After initially appearing to have elbowed Mohammed, the latter was ejected from the game for a shove which sent James falling to the floor, but Thibodeau suggested the league MVP may have been acting.
“From my angle, I saw a guy basically flop. I don’t think it warranted an ejection. I understand a flagrant foul, I understand that, but ejection, no, nope.”
The series between these two Eastern rivals has been heated and aggressive from the start, with the Bulls identifying this approach as the best way to rattle the Heat.
However, it has led to numerous technical fouls and ejections in the last two games, and Thibodeau will need to stress the importance to his team of keeping their composure and not crossing the line to give the officials any reason to further dampen their hopes.
Miami reacted well during Game 3, and they will be hopeful of securing back-to-back road wins in order to return to the AA Arena needing just one more win to reach the Eastern Conference Finals.
Take another look at the incident that led to Thibodeau landing in hot water:
COMMENTS