Got to say this for Gerald Wallace — he saves his flops for the biggest stars.
Wallace became the second NBA player fined for flopping, getting to write a $5,000 check to the league for clearly trying to sell a call against LeBron James last Saturday. LeBron made contact with his right arm but then Wallace launches himself back like he was shot out of a cannon. You can see the video on NBA.com.
Wallace gets fined because this is his second flopping offense — he was warned for a flop on Carmelo Anthony earlier this season. Consider that a warning for when Kobe Bryant goes up against Wallace next — look for the flop. He saves it for you elite guys.
Wallace joins fellow Net Reggie Evans as the only two NBA players fined for flopping. Brooklyn Flop City! The next flop for either of them draws a $10,000 fine from the league. (That money goes to the league charity, by the way.)
Expect to see more and more of these fines as the season wears on. Is it effective? Ask me come April and May, when the playoffs roll around. Stopping flops in December is not the goal of the league’s new policy. But ask yourself if Chauncey Billups would take the flopping warning or a fine to get two crucial points that tied the game late in the fourth quarter, points that helped the Clippers get a win over the Jazz Monday night.
