The Perth Wildcats have received a $5000 suspended fine from the NBL for failing to substitute Kristian Doolittle out of a game immediately after he showed concussion symptoms.
The US forward clashed heads with South East Melbourne's Mitch Creek early in the third quarter of Perth's 100-79 home win on January 13.
Creek recoiled from the contact in pain as well but Doolittle appeared worse for wear, staggering almost immediately and appearing in discomfort.
Doolittle continued to clutch his head intermittently, at one point keeling over in backplay and later looking to the bench, apparently to determine whether he would be substituted out.
By the time Doolittle was removed by the Perth bench almost nine minutes had elapsed, during which the Wildcats had called a timeout and substituted two other players out.
"The NBL's Minimum Medical Standards state once a player shows a suspected sign of concussion, they need to be taken out of the game for a medical assessment," an NBL statement read.
"Player welfare is paramount to the standards and policy, and issues related to concussion need to be treated with extreme care and caution."
Doolittle did not return after being subbed out and missed Perth's following game.
He passed concussion protocols and returned to face the Sydney Kings on January 21.
The Wildcats will not have to pay their fine unless the club reoffends in the next two years.
An NBL statement said Perth had since implemented new concussion management protocols but the club declined to elaborate when contacted by AAP.
"Our players' safety and wellbeing is our absolute priority, and we'll continue to review and improve to ensure this is protected," the club said in a statement to AAP.
The NBL's findings came in the days after the Australian Institute of Sport introduced new guidelines for concussion management in youth and community sport.
The AIS now recommends a minimum three-week break before the resumption of youth or collision sport following a concussion.
Currently, the NBL does not have a fixed period for which concussed players stand down.
But the earliest a player could return to play is six days after a concussion, given they must tick off a six-step process to return, with each step taking a minimum of 24 hours to clear.
Players must demonstrate an ability to complete daily activities, light aerobic exercise, simple basketball skills, light training session and a full scrimmage, all without showing concussion symptoms, before making a possible return on the sixth day.
A player can only return to the court with approval from a club doctor and after completing cognitive assessments, according to NBL documents seen by AAP.
