The NBA has started a new rule to help quiet all the talk about that certain “f” word. And yes, this “f” word is also four letters

SCOTT JACOBS

You the fans pleaded for it’s extermination. Now the NBA is working to get rid of it.

Flopping. Scoring’s retarded second cousin is now on unofficial trial in the NBA after David Stern and the owners in Orlando set in place, rules that will fine a player if he blatantly flops. Whether this new NBA wrinkle flops or not is an interesting question, but the NBA is making an attempt to quiet down a growing problem.

Before I beat the living crap out of this new rule and what they really should have done, here is the new rule to be in play for next season:

“The NBA announced to its teams this week at its annual pre-draft camp that fines will be imposed on players starting next season for clear cases of “flopping,”- Mark Stein, ESPN

So you’re thinking finally! Now players will get punished for in a word cheating. I mean, in essence, if a guy doesn’t actually draw a charge and is still rewarded with one even if he blatantly flopped that is in essence, going against the rules. Isn’t it? Liken it to the type of punishment where one guy robs a store, and the other guy tries to stop him, and the police arrest the good guy and give a key to the city to the bad guy. Okay, maybe that’s a little extreme. But whatever.

Here’s my problem with flopping. It’s interpretive. This is more of that hot water crap that instant replay usually has to deal with in the NFL, where officials will review a play in the booth and claim there is “insufficient evidence to overturn the play.” Well, can’t you make the argument that a lot of flops in the NBA (mostly all of them) are tough to tell and are judgement calls? I know there are some that seem obvious, but in the heat of an NBA game, things happen fast, and sometimes crazy things happen.

Now this isn’t the type of rant where I go on saying flopping isn’t an issue. It is. But fining NBA players who make an average salary of around $5 million a year for flopping doesn’t seem to solve much. Instead, if a guy has so blatantly flopped that is making a mockery of the sport, then don’t fine him… punish him.

Institute a new system where a horrible flop that is reviewed by league offices and deemed totally ridiculous, gets not a fine, not a slap on the wrist, but a technical. That’s right.

Here’s how it would work:

Player A dribbles into the lane, Player B blatantly flops. Player A gets the foul, on a terrible missed call OR player B gets a defensive foul, but the flop is so bad it needs another look. The league office reviews the play and deems the flop outrageous. It hits Player B with a technical foul though no foul shots are granted. Instead, the league starts a new system where a certain number of awful flopping violations, say 15 merit a one game suspension, and ever other 1 after that gets another suspension.

Is it radical? Yeah. But if you want to get rid of a bug problem you can’t just smoosh it. You have to get an exterminator. And that’s what the NBA needs if they want to truly get rid of this issue. It should be noted, that technical fouls acquired under this new system would not count in compliance with technicals given in a game. This would be a separate system to separate the fakers from the unlucky ones. And you have plenty of wiggle room and warnings before a lot of flops get you in hot water.

I’m curious what others think of the NBA’s new rule, and also my proposed system. And what would you do? Or would you do anything at all.

Popularity: 3% [?]