Brown, Pacers Pay a Price for Outburst

The NBA came down hard on Indiana Pacer Coach Larry Brown, suspending him and assessing a total of $61,000 in fines Friday for his outburst directed at a replacement official during a game with the New York Knicks.

Brown missed Friday night’s game with Sacramento in Indianapolis. In addition, he was fined $11,000, including an automatic $1,000 for being ejected from Thursday night’s 103-95 Knicks victory.

The Pacers were fined $50,000 by Rod Thorn, NBA senior vice president of basketball operations, for their coach’s actions.

Thorn said the penalties were for “verbally abusing” the officials and refusing to leave the court in a timely manner.

“Given the current situation involving NBA referees, the Pacers understand the league’s actions and will accept them,” team President Donnie Walsh said in a statement.

Substitute officials, mostly from the Continental Basketball Association, have been working in place of the NBA’s regular referees, whom the league locked out on Oct. 1 in a salary dispute.

But Brown’s reaction to various calls and no-calls was by far the most extreme this season.

Angry about the officiating almost from the start of the game, Brown finally lost his temper in the fourth quarter. With 4:54 remaining, he was given a technical foul by Mike Bobiak.

As Brown continued yelling, he was given a second technical and ejected by the other official, Tom Drakeford, whom he then berated.

After more than a minute, Brown’s assistants succeeded in getting him to leave.

NBA rules state that a coach or player must leave the court immediately after being ejected.