Zach Lowe: Warriors cheat in a better way than the Rockets

As others have pointed out, he is explaining why people are inclined to give Warriors a pass for bending the rules compared to the Rockets.

He is not saying the Warriors are somehow more deserving of that treatment. That he is even writing an article highlighting all the ways in which the Warriors bend the rules is a good thing and points out the double standard at work here. The difference in perception is purely about aesthetics, not about actual “cheating”.

Your reaction that this is yet another subtle dig at the Rockets is just weird.

 

this game has become all about narratives, agendas, and the media influencing who should and shouldn’t win awards or even championships

Does anyone think the league wants to see James Harden and the Rockets win a championship?

all this BS I’ve been seeing ever since we started this series with GS is really putting me off this league, and this is something I thought I’d never feel

Game 1 was disgusting on so many levels. It was a travesty of the highest order.

Look at how they talk about the Rockets and James Harden. Smh, this is honestly just pathetic.

 

Sports media has turned into a mirror image of political coverage...

Reporters and analysts have hated Harden and the Rockets for years. They’ve manipulated stories and narratives over the years to push this dislike all while pretending it’s not real (and calling out Houston fans for daring to notice!) but now that they have this little story where the Rockets are doing something that nobody likes (blame the refs), they have finally ripped the mask off and just admitted what we have always known. They just hate Houston!

And part of me is like “**** them who cares!” But on the other hand, I love the NBA. I enjoy listening to podcasts and reading articles from a handful of these guys. But it really sucks when the only NBA podcast out there that isn’t ******** on harden and Houston for daring to ask to not have their ankles targeted is Ben Dubose on Locked On Rockets.

They’re taking the fun out of it for me!

 

Good article by Lowe. He's not praising one franchise or putting down another, he's pointing out that both try to game the refs, but one is being given a pass and the other isn't and the reason for why is because one is gaming the refs in a "traditional" way while the other is gaming the refs in a completely new way. He quite literally said that there's no good-verus-evil here, though some will see it that way.

 

How is trying to draw a foul on a three pointer a new way of gaming the refs? Reggie Miller is not a new player. The leg kick-out rule is literally called the Reggie Miller rule...

 

It's not specifically the leg kick-out, it's the "landing space" issue when a player is taking step-back threes, a shot that (as Lowe said) no one was taking five years ago. Determining where a defender can jump and land while still giving the offensive player a legitimate landing space, in real time, is an entirely new problem for referees to deal with.

Players also trying to create contact with leg kick-outs and other contortions on top of that only complicate matters.

 

I finished reading the full article, not just the parts you quoted in the OP. I have to say, I was a bit unfair to you. I can see where you are coming from and why the piece irritated you.

 

He's not saying that's a good thing--when he says they're "too pure" to di that, he's referring to their own perceptions about themselves. Klay Thompson finds it too gimmicky--not Zach Lowe. If you want to use cheap writer tricks to lionize something without actually seeming to, you don't use an example where Curry refuses to do it and then misses the shot he does take to lose the game. You use an example where he refuses to draw the foul, steps to the side and knocks down a three to win the game.

Just by changing the example and the result, you make it sound like by turning down the "trick," Curry got his just reward of a game-winning shot. Instead, Lowe purposely uses a missed Curry shot to show that their view of how to play the game can cost them.

 

But I think that example does make Curry look more virtuous in a way. Like they value “playing the right way” over gaining a cheap advantage over the opponent.

 

That is the crust of it .. . . .

Rockets are the ones pinning the guy for the count . . meanwhile the Refs is looking at draymond yelling
The other Warries hits the rockets with the chair . . . .. Now the rockets are being pinned
And the Refs looks back and say nothing

It is WrestleMainia

Rocket River

 

This is what kills me
I mean we had screen shot after screen shot of people slapping his arms and other heavy contact
(Still remember Zachj Randolph in Memphis)

The point is simple. . . .He does not get calls at the 3 pt line . . .HE does not get calls driving the lane
He simply is refereed differently than anyone in the league

Rocket River

 

It is an obvious dig at the rockets, and it is not subtle. Look at the reaction to the article, the responses, and who likes it. All the warriors beat writers, and bay area sports writers, are retweeting this and saying "perfectly explained! love this article!" All the comments on the post are along the lines of "totally agree with this article. Rockets are dirty cheaters and warriors are just playing basketball." The tone of the article is VERY clearly pro-warriors. I'm not sure how you can't see it.

 

That's a lot of between the line reading on your part.

If you are right, then Lowe is REALLY skillful in propping up the Warriors by not propping up them.

 

Its not always some big conspiracy at work imo and at times just human tendencies.

Players used to get away with heavily fouling Shaq and Lebron cos refs implicitly felt they were much stronger than the other guys. Miller also had a rep for such antics in his time.

Things like holding and moving screens are probably more acceptable to refs (who see such sneaks cheats as an indirect validation of their authority i.e. hope I dont get caught) while jack-knifing and flopping on contacts probably seem more like telling refs how to do their jobs.

Tin gods dont like being told what to do.