After being fined $500K for tampering with the Pacers and Paul George during the 2017 offseason, the Lakers were once again penalized by the NBA last week for violating the league’s anti-tampering rules. During a Thursday appearance on ESPN’s The Jump, commissioner Adam Silver explained the thinking behind the $50K fine the Lakers received after Magic Johnson made a few seemingly innocuous comments about Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
“Context is everything, and there had been a prior issue with the Lakers early this season,” Silver said. “And the message is — not just to Magic but to all the executives in the league is — stop talking about players on other teams.”
The NBA’s anti-tampering rules leave some room for interpretation, and generally allow coaches and players to discuss other teams’ players without fear of reprisal. However, the league appears to be drawing a harder line when it comes to executives like Johnson discussing those same players.
“We’d love to hear [former] players like Magic Johnson talk about how great young players are in the league,” Silver said. “But there’s enough commentary out there. And I think, when on balance, just asking them to refrain from that one aspect of talking about other players, isn’t that big a deal.”
Silver also addressed a few other topics during his appearance on The Jump, including why the All-Star draft wasn’t televised and the NBA’s reaction to an apparent increase in injuries across the league this season. Be sure to check out ESPN’s full breakdown for those comments.