NBA Rescinds Luka Dončić’s 16th Technical Foul, Making Him Eligible for Season Finale

The technical assessed on the Mavericks star during Friday night’s game would have made him ineligible for Sunday’s season finale.

The NBA has rescinded the 16th technical foul assessed to Mavericks star Luka Dončić, the league office announced on Saturday.

Dončić was called for the foul at the end of the first quarter on Friday night against the Trail Blazers after he appeared to be bumped on a half-court heave at the end of the quarter.

After Dončić pleaded his case with veteran official Tony Brothers, and Brothers assessed the technical against the Mavericks star. The NBA rule is that any player who receives 16 technical fouls over the course of a season is subject to a one-game suspension. 

In the case of Dončić, that means that he would have missed the season finale on Sunday against the Spurs. While the Mavericks are safely in the playoffs, the game is important to Dallas’s seeding—the Mavs are a half-game behind the Warriors for third in the West.

Dončić has been rolling for Dallas all season long as the franchise’s star player. He finished as the game’s leading scorer on Friday night with 39 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in the team’s 50-point win over the Blazers.

With the star point guard back for the season’s final game, the Mavs could be in prime position to make a last-ditch effort for that third playoff spot.

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