Golden State Warriors’ basketball player Draymond Green was recently slapped with a whopping $50,000 fine after what the league deemed to be an “inappropriate comment” to officials.
His comments came during Game 3 of the second round of the playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves on May 10 at Chase Center, which the Warriors lost 102-97. The power forward was spotted on camera appearing to say, “That’s crazy. Five and a half… I know what they’re doing. Spread!” per Sporting News. “The spread for that contest was Timberwolves -5.5, which meant that if they won by six or more, everyone who backed the Timberwolves would win, while if they won by five or fewer, everyone who backed the Warriors would win,” CBS Sports explained about just why Green’s comments were inappropriate.
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That said, the NBA vet isn’t the only player to be slapped with a massive fine for questioning the integrity of officials. In fact, we’ve compiled a list of NBA fines that are even more expensive and unexpected.
Ben Simmons
As of 2025, Ben Simmons takes the cake for one of the most fined players in the NBA. His fines have exceeded $19 million after he missed a total of 55 games between the 2021-2022 season. Despite starting as the first overall draft pick, Simmons held out on the Philadelphia 76ers and wanted a trade citing mental health issues, lack of support from coaches and teammates, and disputes with then coach Doc Rivers. Before eventually reaching a settlement with the Sixers, he was fined approximately $360,000 per game, Medium reported.
Mark Cuban
Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and multi-billionaire, remains the most fined individual in NBA history. Some of his most notable fines include $500K for criticizing refs, $200K for criticizing the selection process of officials for playoffs, and another $500K for his criticism of refs while speaking to reporters. In November 2001, Cuban was fined three times in just one week, before being fined another $500K for stating he wouldn’t hire league official Ed Rush “to manage a Dairy Queen.” Since taking over the team in 2000, he’s raked up fines exceeding $2.2 million, per the Dallas Morning News.
Vladimir Radmanović
Vladimir Radmanović, a Serbian athlete who previously played for the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers, was fined $500K — nearly 10% of his NBA salary during that time — for violating his contract. In February 2007, the athlete sustained a shoulder injury riding the slopes in Utah. However, he lied about how the injury came about, and said he simply slipped on ice, per ESPN. In the end, he admitted he was dishonest to the Lakers and apologized to his coach Phil Jackson and general manager Mitch Kupchak. The money was a loss, but he was just grateful the league didn’t void his $30.2 million contract. “It’s fair for what I did. I just want to move forward and try to get healthy and get back on the court,” he stated per the sports hub.
Darnell Armstrong
The Dallas Mavericks fined point guard Darnell Armstrong a comical $1,000 after he grabbed a microphone and shouted, “How ‘bout those Redskins!” during a Saturday night game in December 2005. He was reportedly overjoyed that his favorite NFL team saw victory over the Dallas Cowboys that he couldn’t contain himself. The cash went to a charity of the Cowboys’ choice, per ESPN.
Philadelphia 76ers
In the wake of the NBA’s strict “business casual” dress code implemented back in 2005, several players were made an example of after being slapped with fines for wearing shorts that extended beyond the knee. 13 players were reportedly fined a total of $130,000, in addition to their respective teams who coughed up $50K for each violation, per Uproxx. Allen Iverson, John Salmons, Kyle Korver, and Kevin Ollie were among players who wore shorts that cost the 76ers a whopping $200,000.
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