Luka Doncic Makes Huge Announcement After Lakers-Clippers Brawl

Los Angeles Lakers center Jaxson Hayes had Luka Doncic’s back when a tense brawl broke out in their NBA Cup tie against the LA Clippers on Tuesday.

The incident occurred with 3:37 left in the fourth quarter when guard Kris Dunn assisted an Ivica Zubac field goal, cutting the Clippers’ deficit to 10 points (123-113). After the play, Dunn ran into Doncic, who fell to the ground from the contact. An irate Doncic would immediately approach Dunn, who responded by pushing the basketball into the Slovenian’s chest. Just then, Hayes came running over and shoved Dunn, leading to the Clippers player hitting him in the face.

While Dunn was assessed a pair of technical fouls and ejected from the game, Hayes was hit with one technical foul. The sequence helped the Lakers extend their lead as they shot a technical free throw and were awarded possession of the basketball.
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Luka Doncic to Pay the Fine

After the game, Doncic thanked Hayes for having his back and confirmed that he would pay the fine on behalf of the Lakers center.

“Everybody’s got everybody’s back on this team,” Doncic told NBC Sports. “So, I appreciate him, and I’ll pay his fine for sure. This showed what kind of team we are.”

Luka Doncic said he’s going to pay Jaxson Hayes’ fine for his technical foul from the altercation with Kris Dunn.

— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) November 26, 2025

Luka Dončić said he immediately told Jaxson Hayes that he’d be paying his fine for the technical foul Hayes got stepping in when Kris Dunn initiated the interaction.

— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) November 26, 2025

Doncic led the Lakers in points (43), assists (13) and rebounds (9), helping the Purple and Gold improve to 3-0 in the NBA Cup and 13-4 for the season. The win also marked the Lakers’ fifth straight and moved them back to the No. 2 seed in the West.

Was Luka Doncic to Blame?

One fan on social media blamed Luka Doncic’s flopping for the brawl between the Lakers and Clippers on Tuesday. IG account wholikessports believes Doncic flopped “like a fish” when Dunn made accidental contact with him, and then tried to “act like a tough guy” when approached by the Clippers guard.
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In his post-game news conference, Doncic once again spoke on the toughness of the Lakers, and why opponents won’t push them around.

“I’m not gonna just stand, you know,” he said of the brawl. “I ain’t afraid of nobody. I won’t just stand there and let it go. That’s what the game is about. Sometimes it’s gonna get physical. There’s a lot of trash talk. I live for that, so, I love it”

"I'm not gonna just stand, you know. I ain't afraid of nobody. I won't just stand there and let it go…
That's what the game is about. Sometimes it's gonna get physical.
There's a lot of trash talk. I live for that so, I love it"

– Luka Dončić on his exchange with Kris Dunn pic.twitter.com/dtiV1sHQIG

— Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) November 26, 2025

The Lakers (13-5) will next host the Dallas Mavericks (5-14) on Friday night. The game will mark the first meeting between Doncic and Cooper Flagg, the player who succeeded him as the new face of the Mavericks franchise after he was traded to the Lakers.