Flopping has never been more prevalent in sports.
It’s origins are believed to begin in soccer, but the European influence in the NBA turned it into a trend in basketball, too.
Even the gridiron has the occasional dramatized dive in an attempt to draw a flag.
The excuse by habitual offenders? If it helps the team win, there’s nothing wrong with it.
But there is something wrong about faking a fall to deceive officials, and it’s time to take a stand.
The NBA is sick of it and announced Wednesday it will fine repeat floppers.
Players first will get warned, then fined $5,000 for the second time and as much as $30,000 for a sixth offense.
“Flops have no place in our game,” vice president of basketball operations Stu Jackson said in a statement.
The hilarity of watching an untouched 7-footer drop to the ground as if he had just taken a Mike Tyson haymaker doesn’t outweigh how the maneuver ruins the game.
Let’s hope the fall of flopping has begun.
– Jeffrey Tomik
