NBA players misbehave a lot, but they tend to pay for it quite a lot more than most people would. Talking a bit too much really costs an NBA player.
How much do NBA players pay for a technical? NBA players pay $2,000 for each of their first five technical fouls in a season. The technical foul fine goes up as you get more across the season, reaching $5,000 for every Tech after their 15th of the season.
The NBA has a pretty clear list on how NBA players will be fined when they receive a technical foul. It is a sliding scale, with the fine for each foul going up the more you accumulate across a season. This scale is something that is agreed upon in the NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement.
For each of the first five technical fouls that a player receives during a season, they have to pay a fine of $2000 for each technical foul. For a player’s 6th-10th technical fouls of the season, they have to pay $3000 for each foul. For a player’s 11th-15th technical foul of the season, they have to pay $4000 for each foul.
The 16th technical foul that a player accumulates on a season is a significant one. It is the first foul which means the player has to pay a $5000 fine. As well as the fine, the 16th technical foul that a player accumulates means that they are given a one-game suspension. For every technical foul after the 16th, the player has to be $5000 for each foul.
The accumulation of technical fouls resets when a new season begins. Technical fouls also do not carry over into the playoffs, as there is a different scale for the playoffs.
How much do NBA players pay for a technical foul in the playoffs?
The sliding scale of fines for technical fouls is very different. The accumulation of technical fouls gets restarted when the playoffs begin. It means for your first two technical fouls, the fine is $2000 for each foul. For the 3rd and 4th technical foul in a single playoff season, the player has to pay a $3000 fine for each foul.
For the 5th and 6th technical foul, the player has to pay $4000 for each technical foul. Technical foul 7 is an important one. If you accumulate your seventh technical foul in a single playoff season, the fine is $5000 and you also have to serve a one-game suspension. Each technical foul after your seventh will also be a $5000 fine.
What is the fine for getting ejected in the NBA?
If it is your first ejection of the season, the fine in the NBA is $2000. But this quickly continues going up. For each subsequent ejection, the fine is the player’s last ejection fine plus another $2000.
It means that if a player gets their fifth ejection on the season, the fine is a whopping $10,000 for just a single ejection. It is high because the NBA is trying to stop players from getting ejected. Despite these fines, it seems like players are still keen on getting ejected.
How do you get a technical foul in the NBA?
The NBA rules outline the different ways that you can receive a technical foul. There are actually quite a few ways that you can receive a technical foul.
1. Excessive Timeouts
If a player or coach requests a timeout when their team does not have any left then a technical foul is issued. It is not really a foul that you often see awarded as players and coaches tend to pretty much always have at least one timeout in hand.
It is a rule that is most commonly known for causing Chris Webber to have a massive blunder in the 1993 NCAA Championship game. Webber grabbed a rebound with his Michigan Wolverines trailing by two points. But Webber called a timeout when his team did not have any and was given a technical foul, essentially ending the game.
2. Delay of Game
One of the penalties you don’t see particularly often is a delay of game. But if a player is adjudged to have delayed the game then a technical foul is awarded. The player could have done this by preventing the ball from being promptly put into play or touching the ball before the throw-in has been released.
3. Too many players
With the rolling substitutes you see in an NBA game, sometimes coaches can lose track of who is coming off and onto the court. If the ball is put into play and one team has more than five players on the court, a technical foul is assessed on the team with an extra player. You do also still receive a technical foul if you don’t have enough players on the court.
4. Basket Rim violation
One of the stranger rules that the NBA has is being particularly precious about the rim of the basket. If an offensive player deliberately hangs on the basket ring, net or backboard, then a technical foul will be assessed on their team.
It is not just an offensive player who can receive a technical foul for something similar. If a defensive player uses the basket ring, net, backboard or support to gain a height advantage or maintain a certain height then a technical foul will be assessed on their team. Points will be awarded to the shooter if a player touches the ball while doing this violation.
5. Player conduct
In the NBA rulebook, this is the rule that covers the most things when it comes to awarding a technical foul. The NBA is pretty strict on the unsportsmanlike conduct that will receive a technical foul and this is by far the most common technical foul that we see in the NBA.
Players will be awarded a technical foul if they are disrespectful to an official, physically contact an official, using profanity and many other things. Coaches can also be awarded technical fouls, particularly if a coach enters the court without the permission of an official.
A technical foul is usually assessed when a player is talking back to the referees too much, often being awarded when players are complaining about not getting calls.