DeMarcus Cousins set an NBA record with his suspension for technical fouls
Kings center DeMarcus Cousins was suspended by the NBA after picking up his 16th technical foul against the Bulls on Monday, marking the earliest a player has ever been suspended for exceeding the amount of technical fouls allowed over the course of a season.
A league rule created in 2006 states that any player who receives a 16th technical will receive an automatic one-game suspension without pay—something that happened to Cousins on March 30 of last season. By earning the suspension on Feb. 7, Cousins breaks Dwight Howard’s record for earliest automatic suspension, which he set on March 5, 2011.
Cousins was assessed the technical foul with 1.1 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s game. He was also fined $25,000 for making an obscene gesture and inappropriate statement as he left the court after a win over the Warriors on Saturday.
The 26-year-old will continue to receive an automatic one-game suspension for every two technical fouls after this. To break Rasheed Wallace’s record for most technical fouls in a season set in 2001, he’d need to rack up 26 more.
Sacramento's next game will be against the Celtics on Wednesday night.
– Kenny Ducey
