The Oklahoma City Thunder were able to defeat the Portland Trail Blazers by 18 points last Friday, but they did it without any of their five headlines.
The initial alignment is directed by the favorite of MVP Shai Gilgous-Alexander, but he, along with the other four headlines, all had the free night in their 107-89 victory.
Clearly, the Thunder were fine, but the NBA is investigating the matter by potentially violating the policy of participation of league players, according to ESPN.
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Isaiah Hartenstein, #55, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, #2, Alex Caruso, #9, Luguentz Dort, #5, Jalen Williams and Adam Flagler, #14 of Oklahom Oklahoma. (Zach Beeker/NBAE through Getty Images)
It was the second game of a consecutive, and this week, the Thunder had a robust schedule, including another consecutive against the denver nuggets and a potential confrontation of the NBA finals against the Boston Celtics. (They separated with Denver and beat Boston along the way).
On Saturday another consecutive begins for OKC against the Pistons and Bucks, both own playoff places.
The Thunder are 54-12, good for easily the main record at the West Conference. It is easy to say that they are playing the long game, since they have the seed No. 1 almost closed. However, the NBA has begun to take energetic measures against cargo management for players.
It was only the second time that Gilgeous-Alexander lost a game this season, which was out because of what the team called “rest.” However, OKC listed injuries for the other four headlines.
Two years ago, the Dallas Mavericks received a fine of $ 750,000 for players sitting in a game, but that had been in a fairly clear effort for tanks for a better Draft selection.
November 16, 2022, Washington, DC: Oklahoma City Thunder Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drip on the court during the first half against the Washington Wizards in Capital One Arena. (Tommy Gilligan-USA Today Sports)
The Bulls championship banners were removed after the damage during the United Center concert
Later, in 2023, the League voted in favor of a new players participation policy, which would restrict the teams to rest a star player during a national televised game or for seasonal tournament games.
The association was also scheduled to investigate the Philadelphia 76ers in the middle of the absence of Joel Embiid at the beginning of this season, and are now being considered due to the lost games of Paul George and Tyrese Maxey as his season continues to hesitate.
The teams are not allowed that any player ceases to play in the long term unless they are dealing with injuries.
November 16, 2022, Washington, DC: Oklahoma City Thunder Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) reacts after a basket of the first half against the Washington Wizards in Capital One Arena. (Tommy Gilligan-USA Today Sports)
The policy also establishes that players must play in at least 65 of the 82 regular seasonal competitions on the calendar to be eligible for the League awards, including MVP and All-NBA teams.
