Kobe must have some Neo-like abilities from Matrix...in a matter of about 1 second...he made the decision to KO Manu Ginobli in the face (even though he wasn't looking at him, so he must have a sixth sense to tell him where his opponents head is), and then grab the ball out of the air and shoot it again...sorry if I'm a little skeptical that he intended to whack him in the face.

 

Bottom line: If the NBA is going to start handing out one game suspensions for something like this, then there are going to be a lot of guys missing games in the future. And the suspension for other more blatant acts should go up.

 

What about the guy who grabs a rebound, swings an elbow and catches someone in the face? Is this going to result in a one-game suspension every time it happens? Give me a break. This was ridiculous. Period.

If they have a past like Kobe does, its very possible. I believe suspensions have gone up across the league, as evidenced with the Nuggets-Knicks fight. All of those suspensions were higher than normal.

Kobe is an amazing athlete, you dont think he could swing his arm in the unnatural motion that he did, and hit somebody. Heck, I've done that before. I'm dirty, and Kobe can be too. The guys in charge are trying to clean up the league. If Kobe had to be an example to get the point across that you cant do anything wrong, so be it. Things will improve from this. Plus its just one game out of 82. It wil be ok.

Trying to box him out from the loose ball isn't a reasonable explanation???

OK, Devil's Advocate. I think HSSB answered the question.

Are you serious? No.

If you have a jumper deflected your first instinct isn't to get the loose ball???

5Wide, I'm assuming you've shot your share of jump-shots; ever follow through in that manner? He was ticked Manu deflected his shot and got frustrated. Did he mean to catch him in the face? Maybe not, but he certainly meant to back-hand him. There is no other explanantion for that type of arm movement.

 

I can't recall how many times I've seen guys go up to shoot (especially in the NBA) and flail their arms and legs in an attempt to draw a whistle from the officials...and it looked a lot like what Kobe was did on that specific play.

 

No, I never done that, because I never tried to act/flop and draw fouls. It doesn't count for much in a 3-on-3 pickup game.

 

I guess we'll just disagree on this one...I just think there are a lot of assumptions that have to be made to get to the point where he is suspended for a game and it sets up for a lot of questionable suspensions in the future if this is the road we're going down in the NBA.

Trying to box him out from the loose ball isn't a reasonable explanation???

 

If you don't like Kobe it isn't...:sssh:

If you have a jumper deflected your first instinct isn't to get the loose ball???

GT, come on now. He wasn't even back on the ground yet -- it was a "fling" out of frustration. We can all spend days "guessing" about his intentions, but the bottom line is he took an unorthodox back-hand to Manu's grill in such a way that did NOT look accidental.

 

I don't think for a second he was trying to box out Manu while in mid-air.

I can't recall how many times I've seen guys go up to shoot (especially in the NBA) and flail their arms and legs in an attempt to draw a whistle from the officials...and it looked a lot like what Kobe was did on that specific play.

 

Agreed...but not after the ball is deflected away. Again, we can all guess what he was doing, but it wasn't a "Reggie Miller-esque" attempt at drawing a foul; I think most of us can agree on that.

 

For the record, I'm not a big Kobe fan but recognize and respect that he is as talented as anyone in the league. However, he also has consistently shown that his frustrations bubble up occasionally and he hasn't been able to control his reactions. Does his past hurt him in this case? Probably.

There is a lot of subjectivity involved here...again, if that's the direction the NBA is headed, there are going to be a lot of questionable suspensions, and clear blatant acts are going to have to be punished much worse.

There is a lot of subjectivity involved here...again, if that's the direction the NBA is headed, there are going to be a lot of questionable suspensions, and clear blatant acts are going to have to be punished much worse.

Agreed. However, again, he's made his bed in terms of reputation as a guy that deals poorly with frustration -- he has to sleep in it.

Agreed. However, again, he's made his bed in terms of reputation as a guy that deals poorly with frustration -- he has to sleep in it.

I don't think he has a reputation like that. In fact, I heard that argument used FOR him on a talk show.

On ESPN radio, they made mention that this was the fourth time that Kobe has been suspended for a game for an incident like this.

If you have a jumper deflected your first instinct isn't to get the loose ball???

The ball went the other way.

The ball went the other way.

I know. About a foot and a half. And the natural instinct is to keep Manu from getting there first. Foul? Sure. Suspension? Laughable. If he bends his elbow in any way I'm with it...

I know. About a foot and a half. And the natural instinct is to keep Manu from getting there first. Foul? Sure. Suspension? Laughable. If he bends his elbow in any way I'm with it...

What better way to keep him from getting there than hitting him in the face?

What better way to keep him from getting there than hitting him in the face?

Does he have eyes in the side and back of his head? He never looked away from the rim and then the ball...