NBA fines Pacers, Jazz over roster decisions amid tanking concerns
The league cited violations of the Player Participation Policy and “overt behavior” tied to draft positioning, signaling a stronger stance ahead of All-Star Weekend.
It’s not quite getting fired on your day off, but the Pacers were fined on the first day of winter break — a.k.a. the All-Star break.
The NBA issued fines to the Pacers ($100,000) and the Jazz ($500,000) for violations of roster management rules.
The decision comes after a week in which the dominant league-wide topic has been teams’ strategic handling of their rosters with an eye toward draft positioning.
For the Pacers: They were deemed in violation of the Player Participation Policy regarding All-Star Pascal Siakam. He and two other starters — Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith — sat out the Feb. 3 game in Utah. The NBA opened an investigation that included a review by an independent physician.
“(They) could have played under the medical standard in the Policy, including by playing reduced minutes,” the league said in a press release. “Alternatively, the team could have held the players out of other games in a way that would have better promoted compliance with the Policy.”
It was the second night of a back-to-back after hosting the Rockets. The Pacers lost both games.
The PPP was implemented prior to the 2023-24 regular season.
Under the policy, unless a team demonstrates an approved reason for a star player not to participate in a game, then, among other things, the team must:
Manage its roster to ensure that no more than one star player is unavailable for the same game.
Ensure that star players are available for all national television and NBA In-Season Tournament games.
Maintain a balance between the number of one-game absences for a star player in home and road games.
Refrain from any long-term “shutdowns” in which a star player stops playing games.
If resting a healthy player, ensure that the player is present at the games and visible to fans.
Siakam has played in 51 of 55 games, averaging a team-high 33.8 minutes per game. And he won’t get a true break because he was selected for his fourth All-Star game, set to be played on Sunday. Coach Rick Carlisle said the team’s first practice back will be on Tuesday at 4 p.m.
Over the last month, the Pacers have gone 9-9 — more wins than they had in their first 37 games. They enter the break at 15-40.
For the Jazz: They were hit with a far more substantial fine for removing Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. before games had ended. Neither played in the fourth quarter in a pair of games — a strategy that has been used by other teams before.
The Jazz lost to the Magic but beat the Heat.
“Overt behavior like this that prioritizes draft position over winning undermines the foundation of NBA competition and we will respond accordingly to any further actions that compromise the integrity of our games,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. “Additionally, we are working with our Competition Committee and Board of Governors to implement further measures to root out this type of conduct.”
The Pacers have not responded as of this writing, but Jazz owner Ryan Smith did not hesitate. He tweeted, “agree to disagree … Also, we won the game in Miami and got fined? That makes sense …”
This will raise more questions than it answers.
For example, how does an independent physician fully understand a player’s body, health history and season-long plan within the framework of an 82-game schedule? And in Utah’s case, where is the line between rotation decisions — who should play and when — and league interference?
This signals that the T-word — tanking — is a growing concern for the league and serves as a warning to all 30 teams.
Fans want the best players to play every single night. They’re spending a lot of money, not just on tickets and a streaming package, but also on gambling in many cases. The NBA has leaned into it, having partnerships with the major gaming companies.
Expect this to be among the primary issues addressed this weekend at the Intuit Dome when Silver holds his annual All-Star Weekend press conference.
One thing I will say: this united Pacers fans in a way I haven’t seen — or felt — since the NBA Finals. After a season derailed by injuries, it tapped into a fan base already looking ahead to next year.
By the way, the Pacers have never had the No. 1 pick. After a trade one week ago with the LA Clippers, they will keep their 2026 first-round pick IF it falls between 1-4 or 10-30.
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