6 players on the court is 33% the referees fault. You'd never call a tech for that unless actual play started with 6 players playing. Even then it sucks to call that tech. Anthony Davis was delaying the game.
In the end, this is just more evidence that the NBA is a joke, and that the rules are different for different people. And that's why it's so hard for me to care anymore. It feels like we're supporting professional wrestling.
Normally I would agree with you and I even said it should have been a delay of game. However there was just something about the way AD did it like he was doing it on purpose to protest a call. Sheed would have been thrown out of the game for that (Whack! You're OUT!). For the refs to just hand the ball to the Blazers while he was still not even close to leaving the court, nor did it look like he was going to completely leave, was just ridiculous.
Even so it's not worth a tech. It's worth a warning and that's exactly what the delay of game warning does. It lets him know "do that shit again and it will be a tech". Like it or not, his actions didn't warrant a tech. As a referee, you never want to leave a game saying either of these 2 things: I should've T'd his ass UP! Dammit, I shouldn't have T'd him.
Here's eth NBA's official comment on the situation: "NEW YORK --Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook has been fined $10,000 and assessed a postgame technical foul for initiating a confrontation with Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, it was announced Tuesday by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations. The incident occurred after Westbrook came onto the court as a substitution following a stoppage in play due to a foul with 7:55 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Thunder’s 113-96 loss to the Jazz on Monday, April 23 at Vivint Smart Home Arena." The say he "came onto the court as a substitution following a stoppage in play...", but unless he was beckoned into the game by an official (which he was not), he was not "participating in the game" and should have been suspended. Oh well, it is what it is. Hopefully, Russ will get his triple double and OKC will lose. That's a total win:win:win:win scenario. The NBA will be happy because they will get their ratings. Russ and his fanbois will be happy with the triple double and his detractors will be happy because he lost. BNM
How is that determined the next day? The team isn't even in the same city. Does the coach designate a player to shoot a wad of paper toward a wastebasket? Does a referee have to witness it? What are the required specs for the wastebasket?
If there is no shot taken, they don't just give a whole point, do they? The chances are 70%, so they should give .7 of a point. The final score will be something like 103.7 to 102.
They should let UTA shoot a technical FT to start the game tonight and then get the ball out of bounds on the side. But they won't... BNM
