NBA: Wizards coach Lowe fined for leaving bench

The National Basketball Association slapped the Washington Wizards and assistant coach Sidney Lowe with a total of $20,000 in fines after Lowe left the players' bench in the final moments of Thursday's game against New York. Lowe was fined $5,000 for potentially impacting the final outcome of Washington's 113-110 win over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. The team was handed a $15,000 fine on Friday in addition to Lowe's punishment. NBA vice president Kiki VanDeWeghe announced the decision on the league's website. Lowe went on the court and appears to have said something that stopped Knicks guard Courtney Lee from attempting a potential game-tying shot. Lee mistakenly thought it was a Wizards player that was standing next to him and talking but it was Lowe. "I think it's something they need to take a look at," Lee said after the game. "Being a basketball player you play off of instincts, and if you hear somebody right there, that's why I try to make the right play. But I still should have shot it." The NBA rule book states that "all assistants and trainers must remain on the bench." The loss dropped the Knicks to 19-25 on the season.