Sports

Rockets Owner Fined for Discussing Russell Westbrook Trade Before it Was Made Official

The Rockets were reportedly fined $25K over Tilman Fertitta's remarks.

Tilman Fertitta leaves the court after the game against the Phoenix Suns.
Image via Getty/Tim Warner
Getty

Tilman Fertitta, who bought the Houston Rockets from Leslie Alexander for $2.2 billion less than two years ago, might not know all the NBA rules he must abide by, including the one which say he's forbidden from talking about players that his team may have acquired via trade.

Fertitta made that mistake last week when he spoke about being "excited" to have Russell Westbrook on the Rockets, and how Chris Paul was "gonna be missed" a mere hours after ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported the deal.

Marc Stein of the New York Times is reporting that the league has issued the Rockets a $25,000 fine for the remarks.

Fertitta will learn these rules as time goes on. But then again, can you blame him for wanting to express how excited he was to land an eight-time All-Star and 2017 NBA MVP to pair with James Harden?

In other news, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was reportedly fined $50,000 for leaking info regarding the NBA's coach’s challenge from the Board of Governor’s meeting.

"I appreciate the irony of your reporting on a fine that someone should, but won’t, get fined for leaking to you," Cuban said to ESPN.

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