Chris Copeland is known for a lot of things. Like accurate shooting from long distance, his dreadlocks, and being a man of faith. So when the soft-spoken 30-year-old received a technical foul in the Pacers’ 106-95 win over the Miami Heat on New Year’s Eve, you take notice.
Early in the fourth quarter, with 9:18 remaining, Copeland and Heat forward Shawne Williams (Indiana’s 2006 first-round pick) tangled underneath the hoop.
Copeland had seven points, three rebounds, and a technical foul in Wednesday’s win over Miami.
Boom. A double-technical was handed out.
“He started coming at me crazy,” Copeland recalled. “I held my own and didn’t say nothing crazy. … I didn’t back down and the refs felt like cleaning up the situation, which I can understand.”
A player’s first five technicals cost $2,000 each before the cost increases.
“It’s all good,” he said, understanding but disappointed. “It’s a heated game. I wasn’t even trying to there with him, he just turned around and felt some kind of way.”
Copeland and Williams were both previously played for the New York Knicks, but their paths never crossed. If so, Copeland doesn’t think Williams would have done anything.
For Copeland, it was just the second time he has been whistled for a technical foul in three NBA seasons.
“That’s definitely never going to be my M.O.,” he said with a smile. “I’m not here to do that.”
His first one came last year while going against Carlos Boozer, who played for the Chicago Bulls from 2010-14.
“Me and him are cool now,” added Copeland.
Technical fouls are handed out much more frequently overseas, Copeland said. During his five years abroad, he had stops in Spain, Germany, and Belgium before joining the Knicks in 2012.
“Yeah, I had a lot more overseas,” he said with a big smile. “They pick on you overseas because I’m an American. Still, even there, I was cool with most of the refs. I’m really a peaceful guy.”
After not playing in four straight games and just three minutes in another, Copeland is happy to be back in the rotation. Obviously he’s hit shots over the last three games (15-for-30), and averaged 12 points, but he points to improvements in his defense as another reason why he’s being used again.
“I think I’m getting there,” he offered. “I’m still a work-in-progress and I think coach sees that.”