The 2009 NBA Playoffs have been great. We have seen a ton of buzzer beaters and stars emerging from the woodworks. As the Conference Finals unfold, the first two games in each series were decided by three points or less. This is one of the best playoffs I have seen in a while. I just have one problem…What’s with all the tick-tack fouls and crying?
A guy gets called for a foul and he’s whining like someone broke his Ninja Turtles action figure. Someone tosses a ball or swings an elbow, and the opposing team is jumping around pointing the finger as if they are second graders snitching on the kid that stole the animal crackers. Come on guys! I’m going to need the NBA players to grow up. This is basketball, and despite what your entourage tells you, you are supposed to get bumped and bruised. I’ve watched Nene bear hug Pau Gasol and then look bewildered when he was whistled for a foul. Kobe Bryant has five technical fouls in this year’s playoffs and they are all for running his mouth. Simply Unacceptable.
It’s not just the players fault though. The disposition that they are taking is nurtured by the referees. Everything is a foul, a technical, a flagrant. Players have become so dependent in these freebies, that they feel slighted when things do not go their way. Official Joey Crawford leads the way when it comes to being quick to blow the whistle. Don’t believe me? In 2007 he tossed Tim Duncan from a game for laughing on the bench. He’s getting even worse with time.
What really puzzles me is the over usage of the flagrant foul. Just because a guys falls hard to the ground, does not mean that a flagrant foul should be issued. This is playoff basketball. No shot should go uncontested, even if that means having to knock someone on their bottom.
I remember the first playoff series I ever saw. It was the early 90’s and my Dad was a huge Pistons fan. At the age of five I don’t remember much about the game, but I do remember Chuck Daily calling a timeout and every member of the Pistons team was bleeding. These guys were going hard and doing whatever it took to win a championship. They were not complaining when they got beat up under the basket because they were returning the favor. More importantly, the refs were letting the guys play.
I’m not asking for much. All I want the refs and remaining teams competing for an NBA title to do is watch the 1989-1990 Eastern Conference Championship between the Bulls and the Pistons. Watch how those guys play hard. Look at the lack of complaining. Look at how no one calls a tech when Dennis Rodman elbows Stacey King in the chest. That’s how I want you to conduct yourselves during the remainder of the post season.
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