Even by the standards of the NBA coaching meltdown, Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajaković was beyond angry on Thursday.
Trailing 125–103 against the Memphis Grizzlies, Rajaković responded to a no-call from the referees by angrily berating them until he had to be led away by his own players. He was quickly assessed a few technical fouls and automatically sent off.
The FedExForum crowd in Memphis enjoyed what they saw, as did the Grizzlies, reportedly. Rajaković was an assistant coach with the Grizzlies from 2020 to 2023.
The two extra free throws, both made by Luke Kennard, did the Raptors no favors in what ended up being a 155-126 loss. Toronto’s record now stands at 7-24, a game and a half ahead of the Washington Wizards for the worst record in the Eastern Conference.
“We hold each other to a higher standard and obviously we didn’t play to that,” Raptors assistant coach Pat Delany said after the game, via Sportsnet’s Savanna Hamilton. ‘I can’t speak for it [Rajaković] in terms of those moments or what was going through his mind, but obviously you’re trying to protect our players.”
It was the first ejection of his career for Rajaković, who is in his second season as Raptors head coach. However, he was fined $25,000 in January after attacking the officials following a frustrating loss.
