Ja Morant to challenge flopping fine after three techs in Blazers win

Ja Morant plans to dispute a technical foul he received for flopping during the Portland Trail Blazers' 136-129 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. The call occurred with four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter while Portland held a 121-120 lead. Morant was defending Austin Reaves when he took a bump to the chest and stepped backward with his arms raised.

Morant described the incident in simple terms, stating that he showed his hands and absorbed the contact without falling. "I just kept going backwards," he said. "It is what it is. I'll try to appeal it. I think it's like a $2,000 [fine]."

The game featured an unusual number of flopping technicals. Morant, Trail Blazers forward Toumani Camara, and Lakers forward Ziaire Williams all received the call in the final six minutes. The three technicals contributed to a high number of free throw attempts, with the two teams combining for 71 shots at the line.

Trail Blazers head coach Micah Nori pointed out the rarity of such a cluster of calls. He noted that the NBA had only recorded 27 flops across 2,000 games last year. "Good job by the NBA," Nori said. "Point of emphasis. Great job. There were [71] free throws."

Morant, who scored a season high 23 points, said his defensive strategy against Reaves was shaped by how officials were calling drives earlier in the contest. He explained that the team tried to show hands and take the bump to demonstrate that the Lakers initiated the contact. "We were still on the short end of the stick," he said. "Credit to us for not letting that [technical foul] deflate us."

Damian Lillard, who added 21 points and hit a late three-pointer to secure the lead, expressed surprise at the frequency of the calls. He argued that technicals should be reserved for clear embellishments, especially in a close game. "We know it's a point of emphasis, but I was surprised they just kept calling it the way they did," Lillard said.