Lakers starters costly moment against Jazz draws NBAs attention

One of the Lakers’ starting wings was fined for violating one of the NBA’s areas of focus for the 2026-27 season. The league announced Monday afternoon that Ziaire Williams was assessed a postgame flopping fine of $2,000 upon league office review.The incident occured at the 4:44 mark of the fourth quarter of the Lakers’ comeback win over the Jazz on Sunday at Delta Center when Williams, with the Lakers down 114-113, exaggerated contact from Keyonte George during the Jazz guard’s drive to the basket.George attempted a pull-up midrange shot that would’ve put the Jazz up by three points. Instead, the former Baylor Bear was called for an offensive foul, with the Lakers getting possession of the ball.The Lakers didn’t score on the ensuing possession.And the Jazz did eventually take a 116-113 lead after Lauri Markkanen made a pair of free throws with 4:17 remaining.But Luka Doncic took over the game from there, knocking down a trio of 3-pointers and making four free throws late in the game for the league’s first 50-point game of the season (Doncic finished with 52 points).Flopping is one of the league’s points of emphasis to start the season. While Williams is the first Lakers play to be fined this season for any reason, he’s the third player to be assessed a postgame flopping fine just one week into the regular season. Boston’s Paul George and Milwaukee’s Kasparas Jakučionis (twice) have also been fined for flopping this season....