This sounded like a coach trying to lay some groundwork for a potential first-round playoff matchup.
Luguentz Dort was hit with a flopping penalty in the second quarter of the Thunder’s comfortable win over the Suns on Friday night. Dort is one of the more physical perimeter defenders in the league, he crowds the ball-handler’s space and part of his game is drawing offensive fouls. He sells some of those — Friday wasn’t his first flopping penalty. Saturday, Suns coach Frank Vogel called Dort out on it and asked the league to do something about it (via Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic).
"The league has got to look all the flopping that Lu Dort does cause it's ridiculous how he gets calls. If they're going to get calls like that, then you're going to have an advantage. You can't just fall down every time there's contact and get a whistle." Frank Vogel. #Suns pic.twitter.com/totj43OfW3
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) March 30, 2024
The Thunder are currently tied for the No. 1 seed in the West and will finish with a top-three seed in the conference. The Suns are currently the No. 7 seed in the West. While both are in tight races and things could shift, a first-round playoff matchup between the teams is undoubtedly possible.
Which is why Vogel’s statement to reporters sounds like someone trying to lay the foundation for complaints he might make in a first-round series. A little pre-emptive working of the referees.
It’s also not going to change how Dort defends. He is who he is, and it’s effective, he is one of the league’s better perimeter defenders.
