Did Derek Fisher foul Brent Barry? Sure. Was it as big a deal as the media has and continues to make it out to be? I don’t think so. And neither did one of the biggest cry-baby teams in the NBA, the San Antonio Spurs. I was shock and amazed at the lack of criticism and outrage at the refs by the Spurs players. Barry merely put his arms up for a few seconds and headed to the locker room. You got a minor jump up and down from Duncan, and that was it. Ginobili had more a look of shock than anything else. And that mild response and diplomacy carried over into the post-game press conferences as well.
“That’s not going to get called in the Western Conference finals,” Barry said. “Maybe in the regular season. But that call shouldn’t be called in the Western Conference finals.”
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said: “If I was the official I wouldn’t have called that a foul.”
This comes from a team who collectively and habitually complains after every play. I mean I have seen Duncan throw his arms up or give that stare even after getting calls. But in the game and play that, in my opinion, effectively ended their repeat championship hopes they were uncharacteristically calm about it.
Their reaction earned a lot more respect and admiration from me.
To put this praise in the proper context for you, I will admit that I hate the Spurs and desperately wanted them to lose in the first round against Phoenix. Why, you ask? For such a great team with great players and a severely under-appreciated head coach, they whine and cry way too much. For me it makes them collectively very unlikeable. Duncan is without question the best PF in the NBA today, and it’s debatable if he is the best all-time. There is no reason for him to be as big of a baby as he is during games when he dominates. Manu Ginobili might lose half his paycheck next season with the implementation of the flopping fines. As a basketball player myself, it pains me to watch an “elite” player who clearly is a one-hand-bandit and is virtually ineffective going right.
Rant over.
I also think Henry Abbott was off with his post: “That Was a Foul!” Especially with this comment:
And when mistakes are made, I think fans are owed a clear and honest explanation, complete with, when necessary, a swift admission that an error was made. Is that too much to ask?
I do think it is too much to ask. You are asking NBA officials, imperfect human beings, to be perfect. That is impossible. And then you are asking the league to review every questionable call and submit a statement on it. Come on, that’s a bit ridiculous. Further, all that post and the response from the NBA did was strengthen the conspiracy theory talk and hung those officials out to dry. If the Spurs didn’t complain neither should anyone else.
I will finish this post with my opinion on the play. I agree with what the people involved (Pop and Barry) said and what the player analysts have said. As a fan I don’t want the officials to decide the outcome of the game in situations like that, and if they had called a foul on that play, that is exactly what would have happened. Had Brent Barry just pumped and then went up with his shot attempt while Fisher was coming down on him that would have been the player making a great play and therefore deciding the outcome of the game. Because Barry isn’t used to those situations he didn’t know how to react under pressure. He tried to avoid the contact and in real time from the officials’ perspective probably made the contact look less severe, turning it into a much closer call. And they were right not to call it in real time.
The NBA chose its words very carefully in their “swift admission that an error was made.”
“With the benefit of instant replay, it appears a foul call should have been made,” league spokesman Tim Frank said Wednesday.
With the benefit of instant replay. That says it all.
