Dirk suspended one game for AK47 hit

[abomb]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3278549

Nowitzki suspended one game for flagrant foul on Utah's Kirilenko

Associated Press

Updated: March 5, 2008, 5:43 PM ET

DALLAS -- Dirk Nowitzki was suspended without pay for one game by the NBA on Wednesday for his hard foul on Utah's Andrei Kirilenko.

Nowitzki will miss the Dallas Mavericks' next game, at home Thursday night against the divisional rival Houston Rockets, who recently passed them in the tight Western Conference standings.

Nowitzki received a flagrant-1 when he hit Kirilenko midway through the first quarter of a 116-110 loss to Utah on Monday. However, the league reviewed the play and decided to upgrade it to a flagrant-2. Had it been ruled a flagrant-2 at the time he would've been ejected.

Kirilenko injured his right hip in the fall and stayed down for several minutes before getting up gingerly. He made both foul shots before being helped to the locker room. He was taken for X-rays, which showed no break.

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

 

[elindholm]

It must be nice to have the league stick up for your players like that. Congratulations, Utah.

 

[BeeBeard]

This suspension is a crime against German people everywhere, be they tall and blond or blond and tall.

I saw the foul in question, and it looked like a good, hard, playoff foul that the frequently-on-the-injured-list-for-good-reason Kirilenko couldn't take.

If Dallas can't play their best player on the floor tomorrow, then the Mavericks are looking more and more like a bubble team.

 

[Nash2Amare]

Hello 8th seed. (Dallas)

 

[Kody Rumin]

Looked like an accident to me, but whatever. I know Houston is on a major roll, but I think Dallas can still give them a competitive game tomorrow.

 

[TheHopToad]

It just makes it even with Yao and Dirk both out. Advantage to Houston because they are the hotter team at the moment.

 

[Renz]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scr8Ep3ZXE8

 

[fordronken]

You'd think that putting a hit on someone with an automatic assault rifle would result in a few more games.

 

[shazaam6]

aw Not even flagrant. he jumped too early and grabbed at Ak as he was falling. What has this league become. Dirk you got robbed literally. Appeal

 

[Mathew81]

The only thing that Dirk did wrong was leaving his feet in the first place.

 

[French Fries]

aw Not even flagrant. he jumped too early and grabbed at Ak as he was falling. What has this league become. Dirk you got robbed literally. Appeal

shouldn't we have gotten one for james jones too when he pulled shaq down as he was falling? oh well, it's not usually about what the player did but the damage done. you push a player lightly and falls on his head, you'll be ejected...

 

[shazaam6]

French Fries, Even before we traded for him, I always thought Shaq showed restraint for everyone who jumped on him, or hacked him. Which is really just saying "hit him hard".

I know I take it personal when someone goes for more than the ball when I play. There is a difference between holding your arm and just swinging at whatever you can hit.

 

[BeeBeard]

French Fries, Even before we traded for him, I always thought Shaq showed restraint for everyone who jumped on him, or hacked him. Which is really just saying "hit him hard".

I know I take it personal when someone goes for more than the ball when I play. There is a difference between holding your arm and just swinging at whatever you can hit.

What's his other choice? To get into a fistfight and literally bludgeon another man to death right there in front of the season ticket holders? When you're as big and as strong as Shaq is, you have to just gut out the extra contact sometimes. If he goes to the mattresses against other players and gets physical right back, he either faces a suspension (which hurts the team) or, worst-case scenario, he faces manslaughter charges as well. Shaq doesn't often get in a tiff over stuff like that because he's a professional.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

I didn't think that it should have warranted a suspension either. There was no malicious intent in the play. He was trying to hold the player's arm to stop him from shooting the shot, and missed.

 

[nowagimp]

I didn't think that it should have warranted a suspension either. There was no malicious intent in the play. He was trying to hold the player's arm to stop him from shooting the shot, and missed.

The problem is that his arm slid up around the neck and THEN Dirk threw him down. Dirk used his body momentum and his arm to basically collar AK47. Realistically, grabbing a player about the neck and throwing him down should be a suspension, 1 game, even if it didnt look premeditated(like Rajas clothline of kobe). It often causes injury or lost time for the player being fouled, so the perpetrator should also lose time. If kobe bryant was going to the hoop to finish and someone threw him down, incidentally by the neck, I would support the same flagrant call. Somehow it needs to look like the player is making a play on the ball for just a good hard foul. After that a hard foul without making a play on the ball could be flagrant 1. Dangerous plays that risk injury by having the player upended(or risk hitting his head first on landing) when he is vulnerable(or grabbing by the neck) should get a suspension.

 

[RingtheBell]

It was clearly a flop.

 

[Covert Rain]

Disagree. Though I think it was border line, Dirk IMO clearly pulled on him at the very end. That to me says suspension. It was probably reactionary versus it being dirty but it was clear if you look at Dirk's arm and what he did at the end.

 

[Mathew81]

Dirk never even grasps him with his hand. His arm got caught and his momentum pulled AK to the ground. If he was trying to pull him to the ground he would have grabbed him with his hand. It was clearly unintentional.

 

[Covert Rain]

Dirk never even grasps him with his hand. His arm got caught and his momentum pulled AK to the ground. If he was trying to pull him to the ground he would have grabbed him with his hand. It was clearly unintentional.

You don't have to GRASP someone to pull them down. It was like a reverse clothes line. Again, don't think Dirk was being dirty. I think he reacted to the play, fouled too hard and made a stupid decision. Still warrants a suspension.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Disagree. Though I think it was border line, Dirk IMO clearly pulled on him at the very end. That to me says suspension. It was probably reactionary versus it being dirty but it was clear if you look at Dirk's arm and what he did at the end.

His arm stayed completely straight. He never grabbed him at all with his hand. When is the last time you pulled something down, using just your arm? Its pretty damn hard, but a flying body in the air can do it.

I have seen the replay a dozen times in slow motion, and I don't see anything malicious.

 

[Covert Rain]

His arm stayed completely straight. He never grabbed him at all with his hand. When is the last time you pulled something down, using just your arm? Its pretty damn hard, but a flying body in the air can do it.

I have seen the replay a dozen times in slow motion, and I don't see anything malicious.

See above. I too agree Dirk wasn't being malicious. However, he was clearly not going for the ball either. As soon as you make that decision and foul hard, you open yourself to doing something stupid. In this case it happened. Dirk pulled him clothes line style with his arm at the end. Dirk's arm at the end of the replay continued through it's motion after AK was pulled down. Sorry, that looked intentional to me. Maybe he didn't intend to hurt him or foul that hard but clearly he was trying to something other then block the ball. I still think the suspension is warranted.

 

[Mathew81]

You don't have to GRASP someone to pull them down. It was like a reverse clothes line. Again, don't think Dirk was being dirty. I think he reacted to the play, fouled too hard and made a stupid decision. Still warrants a suspension.

I know you don't HAVE to grasp someone to pull them down. Obviously since we can see it in that video. But if your falling out of the air, I doubt you're going to try and pull them down with using your hand. My point is that he wasn't intentionally trying to pull him down. It just happened.

 

[nowagimp]

I know you don't HAVE to grasp someone to pull them down. Obviously since we can see it in that video. But if your falling out of the air, I doubt you're going to try and pull them down with using your hand. My point is that he wasn't intentionally trying to pull him down. It just happened.

And it happened by the neck(indcidentally) with most the the energy applied at the end of the play. Its simple, it deserves a suspension because it risked injury and he didnt make a play on the ball. The explanation that he didnt grab him is silly. He wrapped his arm around him and pulled him down by the neck. Hard fouls are OK, but you should make a play on the ball to avoid a flagrant. As I said the only reason that Dirk deserved a flagrant 2 was that he DID get him around the neck before applying the energy for the throwdown.

 

[Mathew81]

It was a hard foul and maybe deserved a flagrant. But I don't think he deserved to be suspended because it wasn't intentional. He didn't wrap his arm around him. Dirk's arm barely bent and his hand never even came near to grabbing him. And it wasn't a "throwdown." Dirk's arm simply got caught in AK's and Dirk's momentum and weight was enough to pull AK to the ground.

 

[abomb]

Kirilenko will miss the Suns game Friday; his second missed game since the injury.