11/05/24
January 25, 2007
Maybe they could name it after Vlade: the Divac Decree.: The NBA is looking at making "flopping" a technical foul.
posted by lilnemo to basketball at 05:31 PM - 15 comments
Here's the original Bloomberg story.
posted by lilnemo at 05:39 PM on January 25, 2007
When Vlade Divac was with the Kings he certainly took flopping to a new level.At that he was probably the best. His considerable acting skills were a big factor in his success.
posted by sickleguy at 07:04 PM on January 25, 2007
I think t's about damn time.it's real easy to tell when a 240 pound power forward goes flying backwards after being touched by a 165 pound guard,he's faking.you should be penalized for faking.faking being a man and not playing D.
posted by mars1 at 07:07 PM on January 25, 2007
Good. Glad to hear it. I would hate for basketball to become like soccer in this regard. And I always feel that the players get the officiating they deserve. The reason NBA refs sometimes look bad is because players game the system. T'ing flops should improve the overall quality of officiating.
posted by vito90 at 07:46 PM on January 25, 2007
I'm up in the air on this one. Watching an NHL official call a trip and a flop at the same time is painful at best. There's nothing worse than watching 1 of your guys get tripped, thinking a power play is coming, only to find out a flop was called as well. If the player flopped, then they really didn't get tripped, did they? I say, If you believe the player embellished, faked it, or made it seem worse than it appeared, then don't make any call at all on the opposing team. To say someone legitimately got charged and also embellished the fall is crazy. How do you know what I look like when I get ran over? As long as it's one or the other I have no problem with it, but if it's like the NHL (yea you got tripped, but you also added drama to the fall) than it's pointless. I think they are searching for a middle ground to be able to call a block and a charge at the same time.
posted by Bishop at 09:47 PM on January 25, 2007
They should review video and fine them outside the game.
posted by callmejay at 01:08 AM on January 26, 2007
I think they are searching for a middle ground to be able to call a block and a charge at the same time. "I got a blarge on blue, twenty-seven..."
posted by The_Black_Hand at 05:15 AM on January 26, 2007
I knew the NBA would find a way to increase Shaq's scoring since he couldn't do it on his own. So now both him and Wade have a clear path to the basket.. Miami will repeat!
posted by warstda at 07:45 AM on January 26, 2007
it's real easy to tell when a 240 pound power forward goes flying backwards after being touched by a 165 pound guard,he's faking. Not true. I am (a little over) the guard weight you list, and I can knock guys over in the 220-240 range when I go to the basket, and I am nowhere in the vicinity of strength that the NBA guys possess. It is all about balance at the moment of impact, and not an automatic "fake" as you might suggest.
posted by smithers at 08:46 AM on January 26, 2007
C'mon - no one is really fooled by the flop. No one expects a guy going to the rim is going to send a larger player 20 feet in the opposite direction. The flopping is obvious. To everyone. Does a flop mean there wasn't a charge? No - there absolutely can be a charge and a flop. The practice has just gotten to the point where it looks like the defensive player is showing up the ref. I agree that you should be able to T-up a flop - but I think it would be a bit better for the game if you started to fine players, rather than overly confuse the situation as lilnemo has said.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 08:57 AM on January 26, 2007
They should review video and fine them outside the game. I have been arguing for a while now that this should be the approach in soccer. It is very difficult to call diving or flopping during a game. However, a not insignificant portion of the time, you can get pretty good video evidence of whether some sort of reaction is caused by the opponent or faked by a player. Use video to check the flopping, and even adopt some sort of "clear and convincing evidence" standard or something akin to what the NFL uses for in-game replays (conclusive video evidence). In soccer, it could be a retroactive yellow card or simply for every two times you get caught, you have to miss a game. Same with basketball -- any two flops = one game suspension. I don't know that fines are enough -- missing a game and the salary associated with that game seems to send a stronger message and may have more of a deterrent effect. (Although perhaps a hybrid would be to fine the first one and suspend as a result of the second.)
posted by holden at 09:26 AM on January 26, 2007
Actually, isn't charging/blocking supposed to be based on the position of the defensive player? If Shaq is planted in the lane, not under that little circle under the basket, and Earl Boykins plows into him, I don't care if Earl bounces off 20 feet, it should be a charge. Let's hold the refs to some accountability.
posted by whitedog65 at 02:36 PM on January 26, 2007
There goes Pau Gasol's entire defensive strategy. Is it any surprise that the best floppers come from countries where soccer is the predominant sport? Just an observation.
posted by carolinared at 04:01 PM on January 26, 2007
Very good points made from both sides. I just think it's going to be 1 more thing a fan can say the ref didn't call. Ok, blarge was funny.
posted by Bishop at 04:43 PM on January 26, 2007
To be honest, FIBA has been doing this for awhile (sorta). As much as I dislike flopping, I think this is a bad idea. Its hard enough to determine charge/block fouls as it is. Why add another layer of interpretation to the rule? While this prospective rule may eliminate flopping and might reduce collisions during play, it has too much potential for misinterpretation and abuse; much like the current policy on arguing with the refs. And it will probably be enacted and enforced as same.