DeMarcus Cousins suspended for 16th tech, fined for obscene gesture

Former University of Kentucky star DeMarcus Cousins was handed his automatic one-game suspension for his 16th technical of the season, the NBA confirmed on Tuesday. The Sacramento Kings center also was fined $25,000 by the league for making an inappropriate statement and gesture after a 109-106 overtime win against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night.

Cousins will sit out Wednesday’s home game against Boston. He picked up his 16th technical and second of the game with 1.1 seconds left in a 112-107 loss to Chicago on Monday night.

Cousins did not talk to reporters after Monday night’s game or Tuesday’s practice.

From now on, every two technicals Cousins receives will result in another one-game suspension.

“It is what it is, we’ve got to keep working on it, keep improving on it,” Kings Coach Dave Joerger said of Cousins’ situation. “He’s been great (on the court). We need him to be great. Every single night he carries a heavy load for us. It’s a tough deal to play a game without him.”

Joerger acknowledged that he’s had conversations with Cousins about his technical fouls and said that getting another suspension for every two future techs will be a challenge for him.

“It’s certainly a lot more bite to it now,” he said.

This story was originally published February 7, 2017 at 5:41 PM with the headline "DeMarcus Cousins suspended for 16th tech, fined for obscene gesture."