Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images[/caption]Back on Wednesday, the Chicago Bulls took on and defeated the Miami Heat in what some people are calling "the game of the season". The game was thrilling, physical and felt like a Game 7; but apparently, some have taken exception to the physicality of the game, specifically LeBron James.
After the game James commented on two specific fouls committed by Kirk Hinrich and Taj Gibson that he considered "not basketball plays." The comments made headlines across every major news outlet.
Now, I've tried to stay relatively quiet about the comments LeBron made. As a giant Bulls fan and as the editor for a Bulls blog, anything I say would be taken with a large grain of salt known as bias.
But despite telling myself I'd be quiet, I just can't sit on the sidelines anymore. After seeing so many comments that I believe are erroneous and clearly made from not closely reviewing the game footage from fans, bloggers and writers alike, I have to jump in.
Hearing statements like "Kirk Hinrich tackled LeBon!" or "Hinrich purposely tried to injure LeBron," and, my personal favorite, "Taj Gibson was trying to break LeBron's neck," can become cumbersome when simple game footage or logical thinking says otherwise.
Coming up is a little bit of analysis of each of the two fouls as well as a bit of commentary on my part. Before I dive into it all though, let me clarify that I have ZERO issue with LeBron James making the comments that he did.
At the end of the day he has every right to make whatever comments he desires and let his feelings be known, especially when the topic could pertain to his health. Do I think his overall point of him being held to a different standard for fouls is valid? Sure, but that's a topic for another day.
Taj Gibson's Reversed Flagrant 1 Foul
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q94xtYMoooA
For those of you who have not seen this play, the video can be found above. For the most part, I do not believe that this foul merits much analysis and the only reason I'm getting into it is because some people -- mostly Heat fans -- keep crying "foul".
Simple fact is that this play was reviewed by the three officials on the floor and they deemed it a normal foul. A fourth NBA referee who spoke on ESPN's Mike and Mike in the Morning agreed that the foul was not flagrant.
Along with that, the NBA, who has the power to retroactively go in and assign flagrant fouls after review of footage (as they did with David Lee), has yet to come in and give Gibson the flagrant-1.
If three different sources (four if you count Jeff Van Gundy during his sideline commentary) are saying it is not a flagrant foul, it's not a flagrant foul. Simple as that.
"The Hinrich Maneuver"
Kirk Hinrich's Tackle On LeBron James
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc2wXZgeOb0
Replay video of the play can be found above. The still-images used below are only images used to help illustrate my point and do not fully depict the actions. For a full and comprehensive understanding, watching the video as a supplemental is recommended (also, apologies for the blurred images; I could not find a HD version of the video).
Of the two fouls, this is the most hotly-contested. Writers such as ESPN's Ethan Sherwood Strauss and Tom Haberstroh amongst many others continue to blast Hinrich for making a dangerous tackle on LeBron. I wholeheartedly disagree.
While the play was bang-bang in real-time and, as such, can be viewed as a flagrant, watching the slow-motion video of the event shows otherwise. In this situation, Hinrich attempts to do a simple wrap-up of James to prevent the easy score.
Here is how the situation unfolds:
The image above shows the play as James is bringing the ball down the court while Hinrich backpedals. Note that as LeBron is dribbling on the fast break, his shoulders are up. Also, note Hinrich's hands to the side of his body.
At this point, the foul is about to occur. Hinrich is in the process of raising his arms as LeBron drives towards him. James, while in the process of driving, has begun to lower his shoulder while Hinrich's arms are coming up.
Also, note the proximity of the two players. LeBron's head is almost beside Hinrich's at this point and time, which could have an effect as to what Hinrich sees James doing.
For those of you following along with the video, this is shot is at the 20-second mark. At this point, James and Hinrich first come in full contact with one another. Hinrich has almost completed the wrap-up of LeBron.
LeBron's lowered shoulder has also gone into Hinrich's chest. At this specific point and time, Hinrich has both feet solidly on the floor during his backpedal and seems to be on balance. Simply put, everything is going as it normally does (except for the lowered shoulder).
Just one second later at the 21-second mark, Hinrich has completed his wrap-up while he continues to backpedal. His feet at this time are still making solid contact with the ground. Also, notice Hinrich is still upright when the contact is made. Not falling down, not off balance; he's perfectly upright as he had been earlier.
At the 23-second mark is when Hinrich first loses his balance. While backpedaling, LeBron's full force into his body now pushes his body into a less than 90-degree angle with the floor.
Hinrich is not able to get his feet under him as quickly, as evident with the foot lifted so high into the air. With the grab already completed, both players are about to hit the deck.
As I said, the play was entirely a bang-bang play. With a player as fast and as strong as LeBron, this entire thing could be missed in a blink of an eye. However, careful analysis of the video shows that there is no flagrant foul.
Hinrich did not purposely throw LeBron to the floor, rather it was a simply a wrap-up play that went wrong due to a variety of factors (how close LeBron closed out, his lowered shoulder, Hinrich's smaller size being easier to knock off balance, etc.). If the above images and video don't convince you, consider the following tidbits.
Neither commentator at the time believed the foul to be flagrant. Neither commented on any potential danger. Instead, both focused on how LeBron's lowered shoulder was actually an offensive foul that would have been called had Hinrich not grabbed onto him.
Also, consider that the NBA front office can retroactively go back and assign flagrant fouls to players. They did so recently with David Lee and his elbow to Dwight Howard's face and did so within a day of the act.
As of writing this over 48 hours later, the league has yet to go back and deem Hinrich's maneuver excessive and/or dangerous. That speaks volumes about the play.
Conclusion
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Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images[/caption]Everything said is all just my take on the situations, though. Take what I've provided you and feel free to make your own decision, but regardless of what decision you make, I do ask one thing of anyone and everyone reading this thing: can we please drop it?
It seems a bit hypocritical to ask this of you all considering the post I just made, but I wrote this analysis with the hopes that it puts some sort of end to the whole charade.
No more taking comments from general managers of teams not even involved in the situation, no more asking the players about it and definitely no more headlines on the same comments. Rather, let's focus on the great basketball yet to come.
