1. Gasol didn't throw an elbow that missed. He didn't do anything and CP3's contrived outrage toward the ref made him look like a fool and a jerk. 2. The Clippers being the biggest flopping team in the NBA makes them an object of scorn no matter how successful/unsuccessful they are at baiting refs. It's why I've gone from being very excited to start the season to completely despising them. They started out being one of my top 5 teams to watch, but there's only so much my stomach could take.
Actually, Blake was 6th, below such paint guys as Kevin Love and Kobe Bryant. And if you factor in minutes played, he was far worse than that. Who do the Grizzlies have that are so good at drawing fouls? They have ZBo and Gasol and a bunch of mid range shooters / "gritty" defenders. Yet they shoot more than the Clippers. All I'm saying is that for all the hate the Clippers get for flopping, it has barely any impact on the game since the refs barely call it. It's just fun to hate on I guess.
Actually, Blake was 4th. He had 468 FTA. Kobe had 451. Even though they're mid-range shooters, Gay/Mayo/Conley all attack the basket. That translates into FTA. Mo Williams doesn't attack the basket. Butler rarely does. Jordan isn't an offensive threat. Who do you expect to draw fouls? I think the refs are consciously trying to ignore flops, and in doing so, are missing legitimate fouls. For example, I saw several instances where Gasol was hit but no call was made.
They replayed it on TNT. Gasol raised his arm a little, but nothing that would even remotely constitute a foul. There definitely wasn't an elbow. But Paul got a T for yelling at the ref, not for pointing and shaking his head...
Why would you go by total FTs and not FTs/game (FTs/minute would be better but I can't find that stat)? Um, you don't watch the Clippers? Butler attacks the basket constantly. So do Young and Bledsoe. Martin and Evans only score from the paint. But mostly it's Griffin being unfairly officiated (and hence the flopping)-- everything he does is in the paint and it's a joke how few calls he gets. By chance did you happen to see the play where Gasol tackled Mo and Mo was called for a foul (leading to about four techs?)
Good luck finding a clip. Whining loudly about a phantom non-foul call is equivalent to flopping because the whole point is to taint the refs viewpoint of the game instead of just trying to beat the opponent. Mind games against opponents are fine and are a big part of the NBA. Playing mind games with refs is despicable.
Well, I didn't see the TNT broadcast but on the local broadcast it looked like he threw an elbow or forearm. Maybe it was no big deal, I dunno. I don't think players like that and Paul took exception, and he got a T. I don't really have a problem with it. If that's flopping and you are rooting for the Grizzlies, then I guess you should support flopping because it hurt the Clippers. The Clippers certainly did not get the benefit of the calls tonight.
It just makes you lose respect for guys when they repeatedly flop. It's annoying and unnecessary especially if its not getting you any extra calls. Regardless of whether or not they are getting calls it still is something most people would like to see removed from the game.
It really depends if the flop is there to accentuate a legitimate foul or is for a phantom foul. In the latter case, what the league needs to do is give players Ts after the game (factoring into eventual suspension). What I will tell you is that Griffin is fouled a heck of a lot with no call and I think that has led to him trying to exaggerate to get the calls. I will also tell you that it isn't working at all. From the POV of actually influencing the game, illegal holds are far worse than flops because they happen constantly and when the refs are calling them only one way (which is sometimes a factor of HCA or how good players are at disguising the holds), then that can decide a game. But that will never get hated on because people love "grit and grind".
Well, since you were talking about the number of free throws attempted, I thought free throw attempts would be a good stat to use... I didn't watch too many regular season Clippers games. I'm not entertained by flopping. But I've watched the playoffs, and Butler/Young/Bledsoe don't attack the basket as much as you think they do. For instance, through the first 4 games of the series, more than half of Nick Young's FGA were 3 point attempts. If the NBA hype machine didn't fabricate him into a "superstar", it'd be much worse. You don't realize how many offensive fouls he commits that go uncalled. You mean the play where Gasol had the ball on the ground and Mo hit him in the face while stripping it away? Yeah, Gasol grabbed him after that, but Mo legitimately fouled Gasol.
I don't care if it's number one or number two. Both are acting and just makes players look ridiculous. For me it's the fact that they are out there faking stuff that bothers me most with the influence on the game being a distant second. It's just another step in the league becoming softer.
Why not just go by their career FTs then? I mean, seriously, what are you trying to prove here? That's obvious. And the numbers I have for FT attempts are for the regular season so it would kind of be important. If we are going by the postseason, then the Grizzlies are absolutely getting more calls. I think they should, but not nearly this many. He is a "superstar". And he does get away with some offensive fouls on poster dunks (off hand) but those happen once ever couple of games. He's routinely fouled on normal plays far more often than that. I mean the play where Gasol undercut Mo when they were going for the ball. Again, once the highlights are up we can take a look and see how biased you are.
Right, but flops get a heck of a lot more hate than "grit and grind" (AKA holding and grabbing) despite the latter having a much bigger influence on the game. And, me, I'm a fan of physical ball but the refs have to let it go both ways or it's a farce. Teams like the Grizzlies and players like Artest & Tony Allen get this reputation for being gritty defenders and get away with this crap all game long while "lesser" defenders get called for breathing on someone.
This is actually a great example of what I mean for all the Clipper flopping being exaggerated. Here is the play where Paul reaggravated his injury: <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/HKYzX2JQ1Z0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> This is a flop now?
You better hope CP3 is more injured than they are reporting because he's gonna pull an Isiah Thomas on your team on Friday. Enjoy the offseason.
Flops get hate because they represent softness and acting which are two things that sports have never really been about culturally. Nobody is really going to hate on players being "tough" because that's what people want to see and it usually makes for more exciting basketball. When Blake is tough and dunks on people he gets away with a lot things he shouldn't whether that is right or wrong because he has earned a reputation as a fierce dunker. I agree that him getting those calls and Artest etc. getting away with holds isn't fair but it just happens to fit in line with how sports are played. We aren't going to tell guys to stop being so tough and aggressive within reason.
How is career FT's relevant at all? My point was to show you that given their roster, the Clipper's low team FTA isn't something unexpected. Eh...calling Blake Griffin a "superstar" is devaluing the status of "superstar". There are only a handful of "superstars" in the league. Griffin is not one of them. Griffin is the modern day Shawn Kemp. Other than being a great finisher, he's offensively limited. He can't consistently create his own shot, has a spotty jumper, and his defense isn't anything special. Why exactly do you think he's a superstar? I'm not biased at all. I don't care who wins this series.
