Doc Rivers explains 'awful tech'; DeAndre Jordan calls out Clippers
NEW YORK -- While Doc Rivers' demonstrative ejection will draw plenty of attention, DeAndre Jordan believes the Los Angeles Clippers' sudden swoon has more to do with them feeling their early season success a tad too much.
Rivers had to be held back by players and assistant coaches after he was ejected in the first of two overtimes during the team's 127-122 loss to the Brooklyn Netson Tuesday.
With 18.6 seconds left in the first overtime and the Clippers trailing 117-115, Rivers walked past midcourt, almost to the Nets' bench, to argue a foul called by official Lauren Holtkamp.
Rivers was whistled for a technical foul and then handed a second technical and an automatic ejection by lead official Ken Mauer, which set Rivers off.
"I thought it was an awful tech," Rivers said after the Clippers lost for a third straight time on the road.
"Honestly, I think you guys know why the tech was called," Rivers continued. "The official who had nothing to do with the play thought I was yelling at Lauren, and I wasn't. Actually, she said, 'Doc, you're right,' or whatever, 'Let's walk back.' We were walking. We weren't even arguing. So it was the damnedest tech to give at that time.
"What the league is going to do, they're going to fall back on, 'He crossed half court.' You'll see tomorrow, that's what they're going to say. And we're going to all know that's not the real reason. I don't think an official that has nothing to do with the play should be giving someone a tech. That's my thing. That's why I got upset. He didn't even know what we were talking about. It wasn't even an argument. But listen, that had nothing to do with the game, and that's not why we lost the game."
Mauer explained to a pool reporter that Rivers earned the first technical foul for "crossing over midcourt. That's automatic." Mauer then said the second technical came because of Rivers' "behavior."
"Do I need to explain it to you?" Mauer said. "Watch the tape. Behavior, language warrants a second technical foul. Warranted an ejection after getting a first technical foul."
The Clippers and Holtkamp have some history. In February 2015, Holtkamp hit Chris Paul with a technical foul following an exchange on an inbounds pass, and Paul ripped the call postgame, calling it "terrible" and saying that officiating "might not be for her." The NBA fined Paul $25,000 for his comments.
Holtkamp also assessed Paul a technical foul this past February for an "overt clap" in her direction.
Although the Clippers (14-5) still managed to force a second overtime without Blake Griffin, who sat out the game to rest, L.A.'s third straight road loss led Jordan to bluntly assess the team.
"I think we are smelling ourselves a little bit," said Jordan, who had 21 points and 23 rebounds. "We haven't done s---. Nothing. We were No. 1 in the West for a couple of weeks? That don't mean nothing. At all.
"I feel like we took that for granted. We thought we were a lot better than we really are. We got to continue to get better and have respect for the game."
Rivers felt that Tuesday was the first time this season the Clippers went into a game with the wrong attitude and mentality.
"We just hadn't played well the other two [losses] but we came in the game with the right attitude," Rivers said. "Tonight, we got good all of the sudden. We were walking around like we done something. And that bothers me. Because we've done crap. We haven't done crap.
"And for us to walk around against a team -- to me, that is playing their hearts out every night to just win one game -- for us to walk around like we have done something, it bothers me on a basketball level. I didn't like it."
