The NBA has announced (via Twitter) that, after a league office review, it has retroactively fined Wizards guard Jordan Poole $2,000 for flopping during Washington’s Saturday night blowout loss to New York.
After missing a layup, Poole theatrically fell to the floor in an effort to convince the officials he took an elbow from Knicks big man Karl-Anthony Towns (video link).
Poole had a solid showing otherwise in the 122-103 defeat. He scored 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field, including 3-of-9 shooting from the three-point line. He also made all four of his free throw looks. The 6’4″ pro dished out three dimes and pulled down three boards.
Through 60 games for the Wizards this year, Poole is averaging a career-high 20.5 points per game with a shooting line of .424/.372/.878. He’s also chipping in 4.6 APG, 3.2 RPG, and 1.4 SPG.
The 25-year-old is in the second season of a four-year, $123MM rookie contract extension he inked while still with Golden State. Should Poole manage to stay healthy through the end of the regular season, his performance this season should help improve his value going forward, though it’s unclear if Washington would attempt to move him this offseason.
In the Eastern Conference, the 15-55 Wizards are the only team that’s already been eliminated from the 2024/25 postseason thus far. With a loss tonight to the slumping Heat, however, the 18-52 Hornets would join them.
Meanwhile, the win for New York improved the club’s record to 44-26 on the year, keeping the Knicks three games ahead of the 41-29 Pacers for the East’s No. 3 seed.