The NBA announced on Friday that Celtics forward Jaylen Brown has been fined $25,000 for an inappropriate gesture he made during Boston’s 130-120 win against the Pistons on Wednesday.
The gesture in question happened with 12 seconds left in the first quarter of that game. Brown drove to the rim and elevated over Detroit big man Isaiah Stewart who tried to block the shot. Brown won the battle and finished a dunk over Stewart. After hanging on the rim for a second and sending fans inside TD Garden to their feet with the posterizing dunk, Brown took his thumb and slid it across his neck toward Stewart, a throat-slashing gesture.
Here’s the dunk:
…and here’s the gesture Brown made following the dunk:
After the game, in which Brown finished with 28 points, nine assists and six rebounds, he said he knew he would hear from the league office about the gesture.
“Just caught up in the moment, I guess,” Brown said of the gesture. “Big play. I think that the NBA and the [Player’s Association] are sensitive about the gestures and things like that. So, you got to be mindful of that.”
The league is quick to fine players for gestures they deem inappropriate. We’ve seen players like LeBron James and Fred VanVleet get fined for doing a celebration widely credited to Celtics assistant coach Sam Cassell. We’ve also seen Joel Embiid get hit with a fine for doing a celebration popularized by professional wrestler Triple H. Dwyane Wade has been fined in the past for doing the exact same celebration as Brown, so this outcome isn’t surprising.
