The 2022 NBA Play-In Tournament + Playoffs Thread

[Russ Smith]

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He closes out hard on Klay…bangs his knee hard on Klay and it hyperextends.

Yeah I said that in the game thread last night it looked like he hyperextended it.

then if you look at the play where Poole touches the knee this happens right before the so called grab and yank. Hard to do in a screen shot but the right leg is fully straight and you can see if you watch the replay the foot "sticks" and he hyperextends it again. That's how I first hurt my knee at 15 years old mine was a jump stop but the foot stuck and the leg locked straight and then "bent in." Morant on twitter said something about the code and then immediately deleted it. I hope he's ok and I get why Jenkins is frustrated but Poole grabbing for the ball and touching the knee did not injure Ja Morant IMO.

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[Russ Smith]

I mean, it's the playoffs, it's the Warriors and the other team's best players are going down in curious circumstances. Par for the course.

#thecode.

I don't know for sure what caused Morant's injury, but that reach by Poole was... odd, even though I don't think it was malicious. But I also think that if the roles were reversed our local Warriors fans and Steve Kerr would be screaming bloody murder.

In the regular season the Grizzlies actually played better without him. But the moment here is... a tad bigger. I don't see guys stepping up to the level they did back in December.

He poked the ball away and reached for it but Morant extended his leg, which locks and hyperextends again so Poole's hand hits the knee.

If you watch it in slow motion you can see Poole is looking at the ball the entire play. You can also see Morant grab his right knee with his right hand just after it locks again and just before Poole touches the knee.

 

[Russ Smith]

Another shot of him overextending the knee.

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Just after that Ja grabs his own knee, because it hurts.

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[Mainstreet]

Was the Code broken?

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[AzStevenCal]

Another shot of him overextending the knee.

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Just after that Ja grabs his own knee, because it hurts.

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I think you're seeing this with your heart not your head. First time seeing it live, I thought it was nothing, just a guy reaching for a ball. But on replay it looks intentional to me. He glances at Ja's knee, then the ball then grabs the knee and pulls it to him. The ball really isn't all that close. And there's no explaining away the pull on the knee. It's dirty.

I don't know Poole's history but it looked to me like a virgin dirty act. Probably intended as payback for Dillon's dirty play. But IMO an experienced dirty player like Green or Beverley would have made it look less obvious.

 

[dscher]

Was the Code broken?

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Has Poole been asked about the blatant, uncalled for knee grab? Personally, I'd say that if he has and offered at the very least an explanation than maybe there's a chance he wasn't doing it with malicious intent. If he went into full denial mode, then he's full of it.

"It was a basketball play when we doubled him," Poole said. "And I hit the ball, and I was going for the ball. I mean, obviously, you don't want to see anybody get hurt. I'm not even that type of player. I respect everybody."

Ok. Nevermind. This says it all. Some people are turning into such dumb dumbs nowadays with video evidence everywhere...

 

[Russ Smith]

I think you're seeing this with your heart not your head. First time seeing it live, I thought it was nothing, just a guy reaching for a ball. But on replay it looks intentional to me. He glances at Ja's knee, then the ball then grabs the knee and pulls it to him. The ball really isn't all that close. And there's no explaining away the pull on the knee. It's dirty.

I don't know Poole's history but it looked to me like a virgin dirty act. Probably intended as payback for Dillon's dirty play. But IMO an experienced dirty player like Green or Beverley would have made it look less obvious.

We're just not going to agree you can actually see Morant grab his own knee before Poole ever touched him I posted the pic of it. Morant hurt the knee earlier trying to block Thompsons shot, he was limping after that they left him in. Then he extends it again on this play, and then Poole going for the ball gets his hand on the knee if you watch it in slow motion describing it as a grab and yank just doesn't hold water IMO.

Wasn't dirty at all he went for the ball you can see on the replay he's watching teh ball the entire time.

 

[AzStevenCal]

We're just not going to agree you can actually see Morant grab his own knee before Poole ever touched him I posted the pic of it. Morant hurt the knee earlier trying to block Thompsons shot, he was limping after that they left him in. Then he extends it again on this play, grabs his own knee, because it hurts, and then Poole going for the ball gets his hand on the knee if you watch it in slow motion describing it as a grab and yank just doesn't hold water IMO.

Wasn't dirty at all he went for the ball you can see on the replay he's watching teh ball the entire time.

But that's irrelevant to my point. Yes, Morant hurt his knee earlier. But Poole knew what he was doing and he didn't just grab the knee or hit the knee, he grabbed it and then pulled it in a direction the knee doesn't want to go. Dirty play.

Did it make the injury worse? I have no clue. I have no dog in this fight but I've watched it more than 20 times, slow motion and regular speed. I honestly don't know how you're defending it.

 

[Russ Smith]

Here we go. Poole's hand on the knee after he poked the ball away. Actually full speed Ja does NOT grab his own knee he brushes it with his right hand going for the ball so I retract that comment.

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Then in the next shot he releases, it's not a yank he pulls the hand off the knee. Reminder the foul on the play is on Wiggins, NOT Poole. The refs don't even think it's a foul because Poole has already knocked the ball loose and is going for the ball

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[NoelPHX]

That looks like an intentional grab. You can know where someone's knee is while going for the ball and still intentionally grab it. Whether that was the only thing that lead to his injury is another question but if they noticed he may have hurt it then grabbed at it? Then the book should be thrown at him.

 

[Russ Smith]

But that's irrelevant to my point. Yes, Morant hurt his knee earlier. But Poole knew what he was doing and he didn't just grab the knee or hit the knee, he grabbed it and then pulled it in a direction the knee doesn't want to go.

Dirty play. Did it make the injury worse? I have no clue. But I've watched it more than 20 times, slow motion and regular speed. I honestly don't know how you're defending it.

Because what you're saying happened didn't happen. He goes for the ball hand goes to the knee and then releases it, he doesn't pull the knee in a direction it doesn't want to go the knee has already gone in a direction it didn't want to go when his foot locked and the knee hyperextended.

 

[Dback Jon]

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[Dback Jon]

Plus Poole shouldn’t have even been playing, since he came off the bench in the prior game

 

[Mainstreet]

Here is the interview with Jordon Poole.

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[Mainstreet]

Also here is an interview with Steph Curry. He says it's nothing malicious compared to what Dillon or Draymond... nothing in that vein. (paraphrase)

He compared it to "hot stove contact."

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[dscher]

That looks like an intentional grab. You can know where someone's knee is while going for the ball and still intentionally grab it. Whether that was the only thing that lead to his injury is another question but if they noticed he may have hurt it then grabbed at it? Then the book should be thrown at him.

Exactly. This is all very very simple IMO. Why didn't anyone ask WHY he grabbed his knee?? Where's that question when it could clear up any confusion. But if the rationale from what he's already been quoted saying is true, then him using the excuse of it being simply "going for the ball....". Then it's obvious he's full of it. It's also a silly way to lie about it as well if ya ask me...

 

[Russ Smith]

Also here is an interview with Steph Curry. He says it's nothing malicious compared to what Dillon or Draymond... nothing in that vein. (paraphrase)

He compared it to a "hot stove contact."

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For reference in a 2019 game they didn't call a foul on josh Okogie for being in Stephs landing area and grabbing one of Stephs ankles on a shot. The official 2 minute review from the NBA referred to it as "temporary hot stove contact." I'm not sure to this day that anybody knows what the NBA meant by that, the Warriors clearly didn't Kerr said I need to find out what it means first before I can complain.

That's where that reference comes from

 

[AsUpRoDiGy]

Looked like a pretty intentional knee grab to me. Poole should 100% be suspended.

 

[Russ Smith]

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[AzStevenCal]

Looked like a pretty intentional knee grab to me. Poole should 100% be suspended.

I don't know if he should be suspended but it should definitely be a flagrant 2. As flagrant 2's go, it's fairly mild. But replay shows he CLEARLY grabbed and then pulled the knee towards him. It wasn't a hard yank, it wasn't a vicious pull but he definitely pulled the knee. But it was not a basketball play.

Slow motion shows he never lost contact with the knee once he pulled his hand back so this idea that the knee went that direction without cause is unsupportable IMO.

 

[Russ Smith]

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Suspend Desmond Bane.

 

[Russ Smith]

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Suspend Ja Morant.

 

[AzStevenCal]

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Suspend Desmond Bane.

No, I wouldn't suspend him but yes, it should have been called a flagrant at the time. It wasn't accidental, maybe he legitimately fell there but as he did he drove himself forward so that he could make contact with Poole. But I'm not sure you want to revisit every single play, Memphis frequently goes too far but so do the Warriors.

 

[dscher]

Russ, all 3 can be accused of being dirty. You don't have to dismiss one just because of the others... IMO

 

[dscher]

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