Diana Taurasi's wallet is now $2,500 lighter -- the Phoenix Mercury star was just fined for shoving a referee during Game 2 of the WNBA Finals on Wednesday.
The incident happened in the 2nd quarter ... when Taurasi's teammate, Sophie Cunningham, missed a layup and went for the loose ball.
Sophie Cunningham and Kahleah Copper fighting for a rebound after Cunningham missed a layup pic.twitter.com/sk4vOcj0W8
— Internet #BlackLivesMatter (@cjzero) October 14, 2021
Cunningham ended up on the ground trying to corral the basketball ... and that's when Chicago Sky's Kahleah Copper went to tie her up, piling on top of her on the floor.
The two got a little heated -- so referee Tiara Cruse ran in to hold Copper back.
That's when Taurasi jumped into the fracas ... and put her hands on the official TWICE to try to get to Cunningham, who was still on the ground.
The only foul called on the play was on Copper -- and the Mercury went on win in overtime, 91 to 86 ... tying the series at 1-1.
The shove by Taurasi caused a commotion on social media ... with many believing the three-time champ should have at least got a tech or a one-game suspension due to the league's rule book.
The WNBA reviewed the incident ... and announced no ban for the star on Thursday night -- hitting her instead with the fine.