NBA Rescinds Carmelo Anthony's Second Technical

DENVER -- Denver forward Carmelo Anthony got his wish. The second technical he received Wednesday against Milwaukee, which resulted in ejection, has been stricken from the NBA record.

Sources had told FanHouse earlier Thursday the league had rescinded the technical. And NBA publicist Tim Frank later confirmed that by e-mail to FanHouse.

Anthony said after practice Thursday he had to suffer the "embarrassment'' of being ejected when he shouldn't have been. Anthony now has six technicals on the season, rather than seven, but he's still tied for the NBA lead. A player gets suspended for one game when he reaches 16.

In Denver's 105-94 win, Anthony became upset with 2:40 left in the third quarter when Bucks forward Larry Sanders blocked his shot, and Anthony believed it should have been goaltending. He was given a technical by official Eric Dalen for what Anthony said was walking up on him too suddenly. Anthony later was whistled for another technical by official Jason Phillips for an automatic ejection.

"(Dalen) said I walked up on him, the first tech,'' Anthony said Thursday. "Then the second one, (Phillips) was just out of place, I think. (Phillips) came out to try to back his man up, back his partner up. Me and (Dalen) came to a conclusion about what happened. We were already talking. Then (Phillips) came down and told me I wasn't a captain (Anthony is one), and told me to keep quiet and to get away.''

Anthony said he wanted the second technical to be rescinded by the NBA. And he got that.

"He didn't have anything to do with it,'' Anthony said of Phillips. "Me and (Dalen) were already having good dialogue, and (Phillips) came from the opposite end of the court. And he ran all the way down to tell me I'm not a captain. I thought George (Karl, Denver's coach) had told him that he stripped my captaincy away from me or something. I don't know why (Phillips) said I wasn't a captain. ... He said I didn't go to the circle (before the game) so that's why I wasn't able to talk to the refs.''

Anthony, who also saves $1,500 in fine money by the technical being taken away, is a Nuggets tri-captain along with Chauncey Billups and Kenyon Martin.

Frank confirmed it's the second technical Anthony has had rescinded this season, the other being one Nov. 6 at Dallas, when Anthony got a quick whistle after expressing some disappointment with a call. So Anthony officially has six this season, rather than eight that actually have been called on the floor. But the ejection obviously can't be taken away.

"It was unfortunate that I got ejected,'' Anthony said. "Man, it was an embarrassment for something I didn't even do.''

Still, Anthony is tied for the NBA lead in technicals with Orlando's Dwight Howard and Charlotte's Stephen Jackson and is on pace this season for nearly 29. In addition to a player being suspended for one game after reaching 16, a player is sat down for one game for every other technical after that.

"Not at all,'' Anthony, who has been fined a total of $6,500 this season for the infractions, said when asked if he's concerned about his high number of technicals this season. "No reason. But I'm just not concerned about that.''

The NBA has cracked down this season on demonstrative behavior. But Anthony didn't want to get into how that has affected him this season.

"They're going to call the game they way they want to call it,'' he said. "We have no say on it.''

Billups, Denver's veteran leader, says he's not alarmed by Anthony having so many technicals so early in the season.

"I don't think it's out of control,'' Billups said. "I think that all his techs have really been emotional plays. It's not really been nothing crazy, most of them. No, not yet (will Billups say anything to Anthony). He knows. Trust me, he knows (how many technicals Anthony has).''

Wednesday marked Anthony's first game back since he was done for the night after just three minutes last Sunday against Phoenix due to flu-like symptoms. Anthony, who has been sick for about a week, said he's slowly getting better but still feels drained.

"I feel thinner,'' Anthony said of having lost weight, although he doesn't know how much. "That's why I feel weak. I lost weight in the wrong way. I didn't want to lose weight by being sick.''

Anthony did go through a full practice Thursday. And there's no reason to believe he won't start at home against the Clippers on Friday, when the Nuggets (11-6) go for their sixth straight win.

Chris Tomasson can be reached at tomasson@fanhouse.com or on Twitter @christomasson