Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic was slapped with his 16th technical foul of this 2025-26 season in the 116-99 win over the Brooklyn Nets at Crypto.com Arena on Friday. Doncic and Nets’ Ziaire Williams were assessed double technicals with 5:12 left in the third quarter, and the former is now facing a one-game suspension.
Doncic lightly shoved Williams after being called for an offensive foul, and the Nets forward swiped at his face in retaliation. You can check out that sequence below.
The sequence that led to Luka Doncic’s 16th technical foul:pic.twitter.com/vkOKgd9JCx
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) March 28, 2026
This was soft, but it is unlikely this one is getting rescinded, so Doncic looks set to miss Monday’s clash with the Washington Wizards. With how terrible the 17-56 Wizards are, the Lakers are unlikely to feel his absence too much if this call is upheld. They’re 6-6 on the season right now without their superstar guard.
Doncic, of course, had previously earned his 16th technical during the 105-104 win over the Orlando Magic on March 21. He and Magic big man Goga Bitadze were chirping when he was at the line, and the fact that they continued talking after the play led to both of them getting technicals.
Doncic claimed after the game that Bitadze had insulted his family, and the Lakers appealed the technical. The NBA would rescind it, which meant the Slovenian was back to 15 for the season. He wasn’t there for too long, though.
Doncic was asked about getting the 16th technical in his postgame press conference, and clearly wasn’t happy about the decision.
“He was yelling in my face three times,” Doncic said. “I just wanted to get out of there, and it’s a double tech, of course. What can I say? I didn’t even talk. I just wanted to get out of there. They said my push was exaggerated, which was obviously not. I don’t know what else to tell you.”
The technical foul was the only dampener on what was otherwise another exceptional night for Doncic. The six-time All-Star racked up 41 points (15-25 FG), eight rebounds, three assists, three steals, and one block as the Lakers improved to 48-26.
Doncic is now averaging 37.2 points per game in March and has led the Lakers to an excellent 13-2 record in the month. The 27-year-old has made a strong, late push for MVP, but still isn’t the favorite to win the award as things stand.
