Irving fined for throwing ball into stands

NEW YORK — Boston Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving has been fined $25,000 by the NBA for throwing a basketball into the stands after a game.

The fine was handed down Tuesday by league discipline executive Kiki VanDeWeghe.

The incident occurred at the end of the Celtics’ 115107 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Monday night.

Irving was mad that Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray took a 3-point-shot with the clock winding down when Denver already had put away the game. Murray, who already had scored 48 points, said he was trying to reach 50.

LA Lakers sign Chandler

Veteran center Tyson Chandler signed with the Los Angeles Lakers two days after reaching a buyout agreement with the Phoenix Suns.

The Lakers announced the signing Tuesday.

The 36-year-old Chandler will provide needed frontcourt depth for the Lakers, who have relied on JaVale McGee and undersized forwards to guard big men during their 4-6 start to the season.

Chandler is joining his seventh team early in his 18th NBA season. He spent the previous three years with Phoenix, and he averaged 6.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game last season.

A California native, Chandler attended Dominguez High School in Compton before going pro. He was the second pick in the 2001 draft by the Clippers, who traded his rights to Chicago.

Westbrook to miss game

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook will miss Wednesday’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers because of a sprained left ankle.

A Thunder spokesman said Tuesday the team wants to see how the ankle responds to treatment for the next few days before providing another update.

The Thunder won their fifth straight game by beating the New Orleans Pelicans 122-116 on Monday but lost Westbrook in the third quarter. After coming down hard on the side of his foot, he pounded the ground in frustration before limping off the court. Westbrook finished with 17 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.

Westbrook had a procedure on his right knee that cost him the preseason and the first two games of the regular season. The Thunder are 5-2 with him in the lineup and 0-2 without him. The former league MVP is averaging 24.1 points, 8.9 assists and 8.3 rebounds per game.

Cavs’ Dekker could miss a month

Cavaliers forward Sam Dekker could be out a month with a sprained left ankle.

Dekker got hurt during the third quarter of Cleveland’s 102-100 loss at Orlando on Monday night. Dekker underwent further tests Tuesday that revealed the sprain. The Cavaliers said he will begin rehab and be sidelined for approximately two to four weeks.

Dekker’s injury is another blow to the Cavaliers, who are 1-9 this season. Cleveland recently changed coaches and is expected to be without All-Star forward Kevin Love for at least six weeks. Love underwent foot surgery last week.

Dekker has made five starts in his first season with the Cavaliers, who acquired him in August in a trade from the Los Angeles Clippers. He’s averaging 6.3 points and 3.7 rebounds.

Cleveland hosts Oklahoma City on Wednesday night.