Lakers melt down, fall to Thunder after late technical on Luka Dončić results in his 4th-quarter ejection
Dončić appeared to be ejected for a comment to a fan in the Oklahoma City stands. Whomever he was talking to, the official was having none of it.
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Luka Dončić was ejected Tuesday night late in tight game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City thunder.
A quick whistle for his second technical foul was the culprit. And it appeared to be the result of his comment to a fan in Oklahoma City.
The Lakers led, 109-108 at the time of Dončić's ejection, and the Lakers melted down from there. The Thunder finished the game on a 28-11 run to secure a 136-120 win and deliver a blow to the Lakers in their fight for seeding in a tightly packed Western Conference.
Dončić's ejection
Dončić scored a contested layup in the fourth quarter that gave the Lakers a 108-107 lead. When he ran back on defense, he appeared to say something to a fan in a sideline seat. The nearby official may or may not have thought that Dončić's words were directed toward him.
Either way, Dončić's night was done.
LUKA EJECTED FOR TALKING TO A FAN LOL pic.twitter.com/nkKbChczFz— Lakers Empire (@LakersEmpire) April 9, 2025
The official whistled Dončić for a technical foul. The technical was Dončić's second of the game, and he was ejected.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made the technical free throw to tie the game at 108-108. He hit another after Jarred Vanderbilt was whistled for a technical 13 seconds later. Austin Reaves hit a pair of free throws to retake the lead for Los Angeles. But Alex Caruso responded with a 3-pointer for a 112-110 lead, and it was all Thunder from there.
The game came with high stakes for a Lakers team fighting to secure a top-4 seed in the Western Conference.
This story will be updated.
