DeMarcus Cousins threw an opponent's shoe into the crowd. Given Cousins' history of outbursts, it sounds like the beginning of an epic tirade from the fiery Golden State Warriors big man. The story is far more tame, though. Cousins was assessed a technical foul during the fourth quarter Monday night against Charlotte when he picked up Hornets guard Jeremy Lamb's shoe and threw it off the court and into the first row of spectators. Lamb's shoe came off during the course of play, and Cousins appeared to simply want to get it off the floor and out of the way. He argued his case with the referees, but to no avail. League rules stipulate that throwing an object into the stands — for any reason — merits an automatic technical foul. "Next time I'll just step on the shoe and roll my ankle, break it, tear an Achilles," Cousins said. "Just leave it out there next time. I guess that's what they want. I'll keep that in mind." Luckily for the Warriors, Cousins' technical wasn't costly. They led by 15 with just under five minutes left at the time of the foul and went on to win 121-110. Cousins notched a double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Perhaps the strangest part of the sequence was where the shoe ended up: In the hands of former Carolina Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis, who was seated courtside. Follow Matt Eppers on Twitter @meppers_.<doc-sep>The Golden State Warriors got the full DeMarcus Cousins experience on Monday. Cousins led the way for the Warriors with 24 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks in a 121-110 win over the Charlotte Hornets. It was his first 20-point, 10-rebound performance since joining Golden State. Cousins also had a very Boogie moment when he came across Hornets forward Jeremy Lamb’s shoe during the course of play. Cousins tosses shoe into crowd Late in the fourth quarter, Cousins came across Lamb’s shoe near the free-throw line while playing defense. He picked the shoe up and chucked it out of bounds, earning a technical foul. To nobody’s surprise, Cousins immediately approached the official to contest the call. Was Cousins right to throw shoe? The thing is, Cousins has a case for his argument. From a guy who’s fresh off recovering from a torn Achilles tendon, a random shoe in the middle of play can bee seen as an injury risk. Clearing the floor in that case is just the right thing to do, right? "Next time I'll just step on the shoe and roll my ankle, break it, tear an Achilles," Cousins said after the game. "Just leave it out there next time. I guess that's what they want. I'll keep that in mind." DeMarcus Cousins was not happy when officials called a technical foul when he threw a shoe into the stands. (Getty) Of course, few would second-guess the idea of Cousins tossing the shoe with the intent of trolling Lamb. All things considered, the officials shouldn’t be expected to read minds. A shoe toss in the stands is a shoe toss in the stands and warrants a technical foul. The good news for Cousins is that he had a big game in another Warriors win. More from Yahoo Sports:<doc-sep>DeMarcus Cousins has received many technical fouls in his career, and the majority of them have been well-earned. This one, from Monday night’s Warriors win over the Hornets, was 100 percent, Grade-A bo lo gn a . Cousins, checking Cod y Zeller away from the ball and out near the arc, noticed Jeremy Lamb’s shoe just chilling near the free throw line, waiting to nuke someone’s ankle , and chucked the damn thing off into the stands near the sideline: Immediately he was hit with a technical foul . How dumb! If a player is not allowed to throw an object as large as a shoe off the floor during play, then its presence on the floor during play should trigger an automatic stoppage in play. All of Steph Curry, Draymond Green, Kemba Walker, and Kevin Durant were on the floor just then, to say nothing of Cousins and Lamb and Zeller and a couple other by-God NBA players. How would it be if one of them had rolled an ankle on that damn shoe? That is the very point an extremely displeased Cousins made after the game: Advertisement A perfectly sensible rule or guideline would say that if an object is on the floor during live action and the referees don’t stop play , a player can chuck the stupid thing into the damn rafters if it gets it the hell away from the multi-million-dollar ligaments of the league’s best players.<doc-sep>
DeMarcus Cousins says that next time he'll step on a shoe on the court and tear his Achilles. (0:42) The NBA has rescinded the technical foul called on Golden State Warriors center DeMarcus Cousins for tossing Jeremy Lamb's shoe off the floor in Monday night's win over the Charlotte Hornets, according to a league source. The league has been cautious about objects flying into the stands, but upon further review, the league decided against the extra punishment for Cousins. The big man's shoe toss, and the official's reaction to it, gained plenty of attention on social media and created some empathy for the 28-year-old, who was out almost an entire season while rehabbing an Achilles injury. Bay Area News Group earlier reported that Cousins' technical foul was rescinded. The play in question came with 4 minutes, 51 seconds left in the fourth quarter when Lamb's shoe came off near the free throw line. Cousins, who was defending in the area, picked up the shoe with his right hand and tossed it to the sideline. He was whistled for a technical foul by official Brian Forte right after the shoe flew out of bounds. Cousins could not believe the call and went over to Forte a couple of times to plead his case. "Next time I'll just step on the shoe and roll my ankle, break it, tear an Achilles," Cousins said after the game. "Just leave it out there next time. I guess that's what they want. I'll keep that in mind." Cousins said the explanation he got was simple: "Basically, you can't throw a shoe."