The game can go one way or the other based on a call or two. Te very fact that the league will make the call after a game is not fixing the problem. This islike sticking a band aid with a happy face on a compound fracture.
I hate flopping but I think the league is going about it the wrong way. To me, after the new CBA the league is just finding new revenue streams from which they can milk money from the players. I've read nothing that says the refs would get penalized at all for calling flops, which doesn't seem fair. Gullibility and incompetence isn't penalized, but acting is? And how does the league decide what's worthy of being penalized? That's just going to cause a whole new line of subjectivity and controversy. The players have been taught from day one that if you get fouled, you make sure the ref sees it by exaggerating the contact. But doing so doesn't necessarily mean they still weren't fouled. And as has been said by others, the flopping should hurt the team as the game is being played, not the individual after the fact.
They are simply NOT holding the refs accountable. Flopping is a referee issue. Not a player issue. Players respond to how the refs officiate. If the ref is rewarding people for flopping (by not being in position) players will flop. If you let his fish like ass lay on the ground and deal with the consequences of flopping, the player will get scored on and his coach will eventually take him out of the game. This will NOT fix the flopping problem. It just creates a new revenue stream for the NBA.
30g's is still 30g's and guys are going to be f'n pissed when they get fined for it. Probably less than one fine per team for the whole season, though.
To me, there are 2 types of flopping: 1) A guy gets bumped and he falls to the ground in an exaggerated manner 2) A guy starts to fall before getting hit. The 2nd type will be relatively easy to either catch when it happens or review after the game. The 1st type is hard to call without putting force sensors on the players. If I don't have my heels planted firmly on the ground, then even a light touch from the torso of Shaq would send me flying. If the league tried to fine me for the 2nd type, unless it was very obvious, I would appeal with the player's union. I've seen announcers accusing players of flopping when it would be impossible to prove.
Skimming through the history of rule changes in the nba, it seems like since around 2000 the league has adopted a number of changes that have made the game faster paced and more enjoyable. I think this is a decent first step. Given the league's slow but generally good track record of improvement in rules I'm willing to be patient. You can't really know if you are improving something if you don't track it. This at least gives us a league-sanctioned metric that will have a lot of visibility for fans, players, coaches and refs. That alone is a massive improvement.
Actually (hate being the actually guy) but #1 is quite easy to see as well. If you have an "Open Look" (a view between players) and you ref the defense 1st, while making sure you answer 2 questions affirmatively: 1. Is the defender in a legal guarding position 2. Did the offensive player go TO & THROUGH the defender It is very easy to determine if the defender flops.
Flopping should be a procedural call with a whistle-stoppage. If it's defensive flopping, it's treated like an illegal defense (1 technical FT); if it's offensive flopping, it's treated like travelling (change of possession).
Chris flops 6+ times per game. Again this is stupid. No fines should happen. You are penalizing players for what the refs are allowing them to do. If refs do their job correctly, players won't flop.
We want less whistles not more. People came to see a game not a ref blow his whistle. Leave his flopping ass on the ground and watch him get scored on and his coach take him out. Players have to adjust to how a ref officiates.
Maybe you missed it, but I don't advocate either. Whether it be monetary or causing a loss. You shouldn't be suspended for flopping. That's just another way for teams to save money instead of paying players. Ignore the flop and let the player deal with the consequences. Ask yourself this: Why is flopping is NOT a problem at the college level? Because the officiating is hands DOWN better than the NBA.
Lebron James, King of Flop: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZpGKC62qvs This shit should be an unsportsmanlike technical on the spot.
