Lakers' Luka Doncic Faces Suspension for 16th Technical Foul After Heated Exchange with Goga Bitadze

Los Angeles Lakers point guard Luka Dončić will be suspended for his team's road game at the Detroit Pistons on Monday after being assessed his 16th technical foul of the regular season on Saturday during his team's 105-104 road win at the Orlando Magic.

According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin, the Lakers have already appealed the NBA to rescind the foul. In the appeal, Los Angeles "asked that the league review the incident late in the third quarter and expressed that the officials should have issued a warning prior to the techs," McMenamin reported.

McMenamin provided more details on the matter:

Dončić and Magic center Goga Bitadze each received technical fouls after the two had a heated exchange. Lakers head coach JJ Redick spoke about it after the game.

Dončić also spoke postgame.

It's conceivable that Dončić's technical could be rescinded, giving him another chance to go through the regular season without being suspended. In fact, that's happened to him twice in April 2022 and March 2023 when he played for the Dallas Mavericks. Dončić was able to go through the remainder of both regular seasons without picking up a 16th T.

The Lakers certainly don't want to see Dončić sit a game. He appears well on his way to All-NBA First Team status while averaging 33.4 points, 8.4 assists and 7.9 rebounds per game. The Lakers have also won nine straight and 12 of 13 to move to third place in the Western Conference at 46-25.

As far as the game went, Dončić finished with 33 points, eight assists, five rebounds and four steals. The Lakers also won after Luke Kennard hit a three with six-tenths of a second left.

If Dončić does have to miss a game, then he would have to watch out for further suspensions. He would be suspended one game if he picked up two more technicals for 18 total, and that pattern (one-game suspension for every two technicals accrued) would continue for the rest of the season.

Of course, the Lakers only have 11 more regular season games, so it's possible that never comes to fruition.

We'll see what the Lakers decide to do if Dončić sits. The last time that happened (Feb. 12, vs. the Dallas Mavericks), L.A. inserted Jake LaRavia into the starting lineup. Either way, the Lakers hope to win 10 straight on Monday when they visit the first-place Detroit Pistons.