Throughout the first round of the NBA playoffs, there has been a lot of talk about flopping and the impact it has had on league. With the recent comments from Indiana Pacers head coach Frank Vogel about the Miami Heat being the team in the league that flops more than any other, NBA Commissioner David Stern responded to the flopping problem in the NBA via ESPN.com:
“(Vogel) didn’t have a beef; he was just manipulating the refereeing or trying to,” Stern said. “I would have fined him much more than our office did.”
“I think it’s time to look at (flopping) in a more serious way,” Stern said, “because it’s only designed to fool the referee. It’s not a legitimate play in my judgment. I recognize if there’s contact (you) move a little bit, but some of this is acting. We should give out Oscars rather than MVP trophies.”
Another indicator of how flopping is impacting the game throughout these playoffs was the first-round series between the Los Angeles Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies. With the series being as physical as it was competitive, flopping was a big problem between these two teams with players like Blake Griffin and Reggie Evans falling all over the place.
Stern also talked about the past attempts to rid the NBA of flopping with fines and suspensions:
“Some years ago I told the competition committee that we were going to start fining people for flopping, and then suspending. And I think they almost threw me out of the room (saying), ‘No, let it be.’ “
If flopping continues to be a problem throughout the rest of the playoffs, the league will almost certainly take action in the off-season in order to try and figure out how to police the problem. It will be interesting to see what new rules may be put in place before next season and the effect it may have on teams around the league.
