NBA press release:

NEW YORK – Cleveland Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has been fined $15,000 for public criticism of the officiating, it was announced today by Byron Spruell, President, League Operations.

Bickerstaff made his comments to the media following the Cavaliers’ 112-108 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on April 3 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

If you recall, the Sixers shot 35 for 42 from the foul line in that game, which is crazy. It’s the second highest number they’ve put up this season, with the top total coming in that Knicks road game back in February (44 attempts). This is part of what Bickerstaff said after the loss:

I’m not sure what the response is to this, from a Sixers perspective. I guess the default thing would be to say that if the Cavs don’t want Joel Embiid and James Harden on the free throw line, then don’t foul them. Easier said than done, yes, but drawing fouls is a skill in itself. Embiid is almost unguardable. Harden knows how to draw contact, and we SHOULD NOTE that both of these guys are doing it in the season following the installation of new rules. The Trae Young flailing is no longer a thing. It’s not like Harden is jumping sideways into dudes and creating his own contact. He and Embiid are both very shrewd at seeing space and using rip throughs and navigating tight areas they think they are entitled to. It puts the stress on the refs to make tough calls.

It’s not the prettiest style of play, nor does it draw a lot of praise from other teams and coaches, but it’s effective, and we knew this is what the Sixers were going to be when they paired Harden with Embiid.

By the way, the Cavs draw the 12th-most fouls in the NBA, so it’s not like they aren’t getting their own trips to the line. The #1 FTA per game team is the Rockets, with 24.6, and the #30 FTA per game team is the Clippers, at 19.5, so there is not a ton of variance between the top and bottom of the list. Plus, Cleveland shot 31 free throws on Sunday, so it’s not like they were left in the dust.