Nic Claxton Ejected for Lobbing Ball into Crowd After Foul – Raptors vs. Nets Recap

Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton won’t soon forget his Thursday night game against the Toronto Raptors. Unfortunately for him, it’s probably not for the reasons he’d like.

Tempers Flare Mid-Game

Midway through the second quarter, Claxton drove to the basket and was fouled by Toronto’s Kelly Olynyk before he could attempt a shot. While this type of foul isn’t uncommon in the NBA, what happened next made headlines.

Instead of simply resetting for a free throw attempt, Claxton threw the ball directly into the stands with an underhand motion, seemingly failing to control his momentum. This incensed action resulted in an immediate ejection from the game, forcing Claxton to exit the court under escort from a Nets staff member.

Nic Claxton gets ejected for throwing the ball into the stands. 👀 pic.twitter.com/tMXj489pma

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 20, 2024

Adding to the drama, Claxton was also assessed a technical foul on the play. Despite his ejection, the initial foul against Toronto held.

The Game Goes On

The Raptors held a slim 31-29 lead at the time of the incident. However, the Nets rallied in Claxton’s absence and ultimately secured a 101-94 victory. Toronto head coach Darko Rajakovic declined to comment on the play, stating he hadn’t seen it.

The Nets’ Jordi Fernandez, the recently appointed coach newly returned from leading the Canadian Olympic team, will likely address the incident in his post-game press conference.

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