Luka Doncic will be in the lineup for the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night in Detroit after the NBA rescinded his 16th technical foul that would have triggered an automatic one-game suspension.
Doncic received a technical foul late in the third quarter of Saturday’s win over the Orlando Magic, a double technical that was also called on Magic center Goga Bitadze. The incident happened while Doncic was at the free-throw line, with both players exchanging words before officials assessed the penalties. The call brought Doncic to the suspension limit, and the Lakers quickly appealed.
The league ruled Sunday that the technical would be rescinded, keeping Doncic at 15 and clearing him for Monday’s road game against the Pistons. It wasn’t the first time he has flirted with that line — during his Dallas years, his 16th technical was also overturned on two separate occasions, allowing him to avoid the mandatory suspension.
Saturday’s incident didn’t slow him much in the box score. Even after a rough second half (2-for-13 from the floor, 0-for-7 from three), Doncic finished with 33 points and eight assists as Los Angeles stretched its winning streak to nine.
For the season, Doncic is averaging 33.4 points, 7.9 rebounds and 8.4 assists over 59 games. He’ll have to avoid getting another technical foul during the Lakers’ final 11 games of the season, or the automatic suspension will be triggered — for real this time.
