Hawks' Young fined $20,000 for ref remarks

NEW YORK – Atlanta guard Trae Young was fined $20,000 by the NBA on Thursday (Friday, Manila time) for "inappropriate language" directed at a game official after the Hawks' loss to the Mavericks in Dallas.

Young was irate as time expired in the Mavericks' 118-117 victory, believing he was fouled by Dallas' Willie Cauley-Stein on the final play of the game, when the Hawks couldn't make a potential game-winner.

Young could be seen approaching and yelling at an official about the no-call, although officiating crew chief Josh Tiven told a pool reporter after the game that officials felt contact between Young and Cauley-Stein was "incidental" and didn't call for a whistle.

The league said in a statement on Thursday the decision was correct.

"Under the playing rules, Dallas' Willie Cauley-Stein was entitled to a normal step on a screen from behind, which he took, and which led to incidental and legal contact between Cauley-Stein and Young," the league said.

Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce said after the game that Cauley-Stein "ran Tray over — and that's a foul."

"It blows up our play," he said.