Imago
Jun 5, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks to the media before game one between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers in the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Imago
Jun 5, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks to the media before game one between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers in the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Adam Silver seemingly got the fans’ memo. In a definitive crackdown on late-season roster manipulation, the NBA has levied a combined $600,000 in fines against two teams. The more shocking aspect is that while everyone was expecting this punishment on the Utah Jazz, even the Indiana Pacers were deemed guilty of the same. Amid fan outrage over alleged tanking, the NBA community demanded accountability from the league officer. That spurred a very stern message from the NBA Commissioner.
The league announced Thursday that the Jazz have been fined $500,000 for “conduct detrimental to the league,” while the Pacers were hit with a $100,000 penalty for violating the Player Participation Policy. The substantial fines serve as a warning shot to teams perceived to be prioritizing draft lottery positioning over competitive integrity as the 2026 All-Star break approaches.
Commissioner Adam Silver did not mince words regarding the discipline, stating: “Overt behavior like this that prioritizes draft position over winning undermines the foundation of NBA competition and we will respond accordingly to any further actions that compromise the integrity of our games.”
The league’s investigation into the Jazz centered on their February 7 and 9 matchups against the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat. The NBA concluded that in both contests, Utah removed stars Lauri Markkanen and recently acquired Jaren Jackson Jr. before the start of the fourth quarter and did not return them to the floor.
Adam Silver on the Jazz and Pacers fines:
“Overt behavior like this that prioritizes draft position over winning undermines the foundation of NBA competition and we will respond accordingly to any further actions that compromise the integrity of our games.”
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) February 13, 2026
The games were still inconclusive at the moment and both players were on a scoring tear combined. The Jazz ended up winning over the Miami 111-115. The clincher though was Will Hardy admitting after the game that he had no intention of subbing them in.
The Jazz initially rested Markkanen for the next game but the reaction from fans who suspect Adam Silver gave the front office a call overturned his availability. Jaren Jackson Jr has been an instant blessing to the Jazz and young fans show up to the game because of Markkanen. So fans took their questionable status as a direct effort at self-sabotage.
They allege that the Jazz is trying to tank to prevent their 2026 first-round pick from conveying to the Oklahoma City Thunder. While the NBA community saw this as shameless tanking, the other side of this punishment was a plot twist.
The Pacers also fall under league scrutiny
The Pacers’ fine stems from a February 3 game against these same Jazz (which somehow is a double whammy for Utah). The NBA’s statement revealed that an independent physician determined that Pascal Siakam and two other starters were healthy enough to play.
According to the league, Indiana’s decision to hold out the trio violated the standards of the Participation Policy, which mandates that star players remain available for games unless a legitimate medical necessity prevents them from doing so. The Jazz ended up winning this game too, but the Pacers put up a tough fight to make this a 131-122 game.
Unlike the relatively healthier Jazz, the Pacers are a skeleton crew with more injuries than backups. They acquired Ivica Zubc who is recovering from an ankle injury. But since the Pacers don’t have a clear timeline on him, Knicks legend Walt “Clyde” Frazier accused them of tanking. Draymond Green also made his observations about league-wide tanking clear.
As the pattern has been, the Pacers beat the Knicks in that overtime game with a massive effort from Pascal Siakam. But the accusations have been following them the entire season while Tyrese Haliburton is sidelined.
The NBA’s report noted that even if the Pacers wanted to manage minutes, the team “could have held the players out of other games in a way that would have better promoted compliance with the Policy.”
As the All-Star festivities begin this weekend in Los Angeles, fans are already signalling Adam Silver’s offfice look into other teams for intentional losing too. With the Jazz and Pacers now on notice, the NBA is signaling that any further attempts to “near shutdown” star players will result in escalating seven-figure penalties.