Brandon Jennings fined $35,000 for ‘menacing gestures’ during scuffle with Suns

The NBA announced on Thursday they are fining Brandon Jennings $35,000 for making a “menacing gesture” during Tuesday’s game between the Wizards and Suns. Jennings was ejected from the game after referees said he pointed his finger at Jared Dudley like a gun during the melee.

After the game, Jennings told Candace Buckner of the Washington Post that the gesture wasn’t intended to appear violent

“I was telling Dudley to relax, like, calm down, because you’re not that type of guy,” Jennings said. “Jason Smith didn’t do anything wrong anyway. All he did was set a good pick, so for you to come at a guy like Jason Smith, who’s not even a bad guy or don’t do things like that – so what are you doing? I was just protecting my teammate.”

“I’m sure I’ll hear from them tomorrow,” Jennings said. “I’m just more upset because I feel like I was really getting into my rhythm tonight and I get kicked out for standing up for a teammate. Like, what the heck?”

It would be understandable if the NBA just had a zero-tolerance policy toward anything that looked like a gun gesture. Other players have been fined for similar actions in the past. However, Jennings’ fine comes just two weeks after the league decided not to fine Isaiah Thomas for making a similar gesture during a game against the Raptors.

So who knows how the policy works at this point, but at the end of the day, the decision is final and Jennings’ pockets will be a bit lighter as a result. Jared Dudley’s pockets will be a bit lighter as well. He was also docked $35,000 for his part in Tuesday’s fracas. No other players were fined.