Lakers: Wife of fan ejected after Luka Dončić exchange in Sacramento speaks out

The courtside fan removed from the Los Angeles Lakers' win in Sacramento after an exchange with Luka Dončić now has someone speaking for him. His wife, Kellie DeMarco, posted on Instagram Saturday to say he meant no harm and regrets how the moment looked, NY Post Sports reported.

The incident came in the third quarter of Wednesday's game against the Kings. Jarred Vanderbilt blocked a short floater by Malik Monk, and the ball rolled out of bounds into the man's lap. He sent it back to the official with a hard two-handed pass. Dončić immediately challenged him over it, and arena staff walked the fan out with 2:35 left in the period. Dončić later said he was only asking the man why he had thrown the ball so hard at the referee, according to the Post, which credited Khobi Price of The California Post for the postgame comments. OutKick noted that the official was a woman and took the fan's side, arguing that the ejection was an overreaction to a routine chest pass.

DeMarco is a former television news reporter with three Emmy Awards who now works as a motivational speaker. She took a light approach in her post, joking that her husband was getting more airtime than she ever did. She said he played basketball for years and that "the chest pass muscle memory never left," adding that he feels bad about how it came across and respects the officials. She also thanked Kings fans for their support.

For the Lakers, the episode is a sideshow to a strong week. The win in Sacramento finished 116-103, and the Post reported that Dončić scored 40 points. Neither the league nor the team has announced any further action over the incident.

What it means for Detroit

Los Angeles arrives in Detroit on Sunday at 8-2 with four straight wins: 131-125 over Toronto, 138-117 over Miami, the win at Sacramento and a 124-118 home win over Portland. Both losses came early in the season. One was 136-129 at home against Portland and the other was 112-95 at Golden State, the only time this team has been held under 100. The offense has scored at least 116 points in each game of the current run, so the matchup comes down to whether the Pistons can slow that pace on their own floor. The game airs on NBA TV and Spectrum SportsNet.

The market still favors Detroit. On this site's board, which tracks 12 venues, the Pistons are 4.5-point favorites. Novig has them at -167 on the moneyline, with the Lakers at +163. On the spread, Novig lists Detroit -4.5 at -106. The best price anywhere is Pinnacle at -105, and Los Angeles +4.5 is -102 on Novig. The total sits at 220.5 on Novig, with the over at -102 and the under at -100. Elsewhere, Pinnacle has the over at 220 for -109 and bet365 has the under at 221.5 for -110. The venues are close on the number itself. Sportsbook hold runs from about 2.4% to 5.4% across the three markets, so most of the difference between venues comes from the margin each one builds into its price, not from any disagreement about who should win.