OT - Bryant calls referee "fucking ***got"

[magnifier661]

"It's important to be who you are!" --- Kobe Bryant on the press conference about his homo-phobic comment to the refs.

 

[Mamba]

pfft that was the slap on the wrist I expected, that is a joke, had he been suspended, he would had to have forfeited a games pay and not been available to play for what ever game. That would have been a hell of a lot more money.
fkn guy get away once again

we need a new commissioner for the NBA, Stern is a joke.

He punched a chair, threw a towel, and said the word "fa.ggot." A $100,000 donation to some charity is a very respectable donation for such actions.

 

[BrianFromWA]

if he would've gotten the tech, it would've been a suspension and 1/110th dock of pay (~240k) donated to some respectable charity, with the added caveat that it's actually PART OF THE LEAGUE RULES.

 

[magnifier661]

He punched a chair, threw a towel, and said the word "fa.ggot." A $100,000 donation to some charity is a very respectable donation for such actions.

Frankly, the word doesn't bother me. No reason to suspend Kobe for being what he wants to be. He's just telling the world.

"It's important to be who you are!" --- Kobe Bryant

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

He punched a chair, threw a towel, and said the word "fa.ggot." A $100,000 donation to some charity is a very respectable donation for such actions.

He's fighting the fine

X

 

[Boob-No-More]

I don't know if you watched the game, but there were horrible calls going for both teams. It is no different than the treatment Durant, LeBitch, and Wade, get.

That's not the point. Yeah, superstars get the calls. Jordan got them (but not early in his career when he was totally physically abused by the Pistons and other veteran players/teams - he had to earn his preferential treatment). Kobe has probably benefited more from "superstar calls" than any other player in the history of the league. He was anointed as a chosen one at a very young age and has been benefiting ever since. But, as I said, that's not the point.

Kobe should've gotten T'd up again for punching the chair and throwing the towel.

That was my point and this is where the real preferential treatment for Kobe the individual and the Lakers as a team, comes in. Why even have the stupid
"respect the game" rule if it's so selectively enforced? ANYBODY else, on ANY other team would have received a second technical, and then a 1 game suspension (for his 16th tech). I don't even think LeBron could get away with that shit without getting T-ed up. But, it's Kobe, it's the Lakers and play-off seeding is on the line, both in that game and the one tonight. So, there is NO WAY IN HELL Kobe gets tossed and suspended. The fine thing is a farce. It's the league's way of "punishing" Kobe without hurting the Lakers on the court.

You know that David Stern absolutely wants the Lakers in the finals this year. Anyone else making it out of the west is a ratings disaster. The east is much more open. Any of these match-ups are a ratings goldmine:

Lakers - Knicks: Two biggest media markets, multiple superstars. Won't happen because the Knicks gave up too much to get Carmelo.
Lakers - Celtics: Historic rivalry, two franchises with most NBA titles, doesn't matter if it's Wilt vs. Russell, Magic vs. Bird or Kobe vs. KG, Lakers - Celtics is always good for high ratings.
Lakers - Heat: Fakers vs. Heatles. Kobe vs. LeBron. Superstar heaven and a wet dream come true for commissar Stern.
Lakers - Bulls: THIS is Stern's preference. The passing of the torch from Kobe to Rose. Phil's last hurrah vs. the team he coached to six titles. Kobe's chance to match Michael Jordan with his 6th ring. So many ways to promote this match-up between two of the three largest markets.

Of the other top teams in the west, yeah right.

Spurs - small market, boring star, second and third best players are from Argentina and France - not exactly going to get a lot of interest from Joe Sixpack casual fan.
Mavs - Stern HATES Cuban. No way in hell does this happen. While the Lakers get to play 8-5, the Mavs will be stuck playing 5-8 thanks to Cuban's big mouth. BTW, if anyone on the Mavs would have had an outburst similar to Kobe's you can bet they would have been ejected and suspended and then Cuban fined $1 million for bitching about it on his blog.
OKC - Young superstar, but tiny market. No historic rivalries (like Lakers - Celtics or Lakers - Bulls) or past post season success. No one outside of OKC would watch them in the finals.
Portland, New Orleans, Denver and Memphis - all small markets no one cares about on a national level. Outside of perhaps Chris Paul, not marketable superstars. No historic rivalries with any of the top teams in the east. Any of these would be a ratings disaster.

In fact, I think that is worse than calling the ref a fucking fa.ggot.

Not sure if I agree. I think all his behavior was offensive and he deserved a second technical and suspension for multiple reasons. He basically did three things that deserved a second technical and got a free pass on all three.

However, if you going to try and convince me that Kobe gets more superstar calls than anyone else in the NBA

Red herring. This isn't about personal fouls, it's about multiple violations of the "respect the game" rule that would have earned anyone else a second technical and a resulting 1 game suspension.

BNM

 

[Boob-No-More]

I thought that was hilarious of Phil. There is a place for real angst and there is a place for not being so politically correct. People can get upset at whatever they want - This movie got all the fame because of the sexual material in it - so it's OK to refer to it in this way - but not OK to do so as a joke? Please. I bet that if Phil were to say a title of a Porno flick no-one would care - because there are no interest groups that get offended.

Kobe used a term in a negative way - the uproar was legitimate. Phil did not - he made a joke. Big effin' deal. People that can't accept that there will be some fun made at an area they care about are in for a disappointment. This is the nature of the world. As long as it is not done in a malicious way - no harm done.

Good points. I wasn't offended by the joke. It was the arrogance of the "apology" that offended me. Why "apologize" at all if you don't mean it? It just makes you look like an ass. Not that Phil cares. He is an ass, and seems to enjoy being one.

BNM

 

[andalusian]

Good points. I wasn't offended by the joke. It was the arrogance of the "apology" that offended me.

I am willing to bet he was forced to do it. With David Stern and the "league image" issues - that's exactly what it smelled like to me - and I like that Phil made fun of it.

 

[Mamba]

if he would've gotten the tech, it would've been a suspension and 1/110th dock of pay (~240k) donated to some respectable charity, with the added caveat that it's actually PART OF THE LEAGUE RULES.

You think maybe, just maybe the refs didn't see him punch the chair or throw the towel? I don't know where the 3rd ref is, but two of them have their back positioned to him.

 

[magnifier661]

You think maybe, just maybe the refs didn't see him punch the chair or throw the towel? I don't know where the 3rd ref is, but two of them have their back positioned to him.

How many times have the league intervened after a game; when the refs didn't see the call? I mean they reneged the tech given to Kobe a game earlier.

 

[Mamba]

Can the league go back and give a Tech, after the fact?

I don't see how punching a chair (actually, Joe Smith) is suspension worthy. It definitely deserves a T if the refs call it, but they didn't...

 

[Shapecity]

I'm not bothered by it. You hear the word being used so often. Haven't you guys ever been cut off on the freeway and had an emotional outburst and referred to the other driver as a ***got? Does that make you homophobic? Does that make you insensitive?

 

[magnifier661]

I'm not bothered by it. You hear the word being used so often. Haven't you guys ever been cut off on the freeway and had an emotional outburst and referred to the other driver as a ***got? Does that make you homophobic? Does that make you insensitive?

Yes. What if you called them a "N*gger"? Now "Cocksucker"... That is an entirely different story

 

[NJNetz]

You guys bitch too much.

 

[magnifier661]

You guys bitch too much.

Honestly I don't care. BUT IT'S KOBE! Gotta jump on the Hate Kobe Bandwagon! I am a Hater

 

[Boob-No-More]

Can the league go back and give a Tech, after the fact?

I don't see how punching a chair (actually, Joe Smith) is suspension worthy. It definitely deserves a T if the refs call it, but they didn't...

You miss the point. Punching a chair, throwing a towel isn't suspension worthy, but you acknowledge he deserved a technical for his behavior. That would have been his second technical of the game - automatic ejection, and his 16th technical of the season - automatic 1 game suspension.

He would not have been suspended for punching a chair or throwing a towel. The suspension would have been for his cumulative season long body of work. Dwight Howard has been suspended multiple times this season for too many technicals. But, there is no way the league allows Kobe to get ejected from the Spurs game and then suspended for tonight's season finale - and both of those would have been automatic if he'd received the much deserved second technical. Seriously, short of punching a ref, I don't think there is anything Kobe could have done that would have gotten HIM a second technical in that situation. There's just too much money at stake for Stern to allow that to happen.

BNM

 

[Natebishop3]

Maybe the NBA didn't want Bryant suspended for the Kings game because they want the Lakers to win. Even with all the bullshit, I doubt the NBA wants the Lakers to play us.

 

[Mamba]

^because you guys are so scary.

 

[magnifier661]

^because you guys are so scary.

second round. You guys look like you close the season with a win

 

[maxiep]

"It's important to be who you are!" --- Kobe Bryant on the press conference about his homo-phobic comment to the refs.

A rapist?

 

[PapaG]

A rapist?

A homophobic rapist.

Quite the guy, Laker fans.

 

[Boob-No-More]

second round. You guys look like you close the season with a win

Not so fast.... Kings come back from 20 down and the game is headed to OT. You can catch it live on NBA TV.

BNM

 

[Boob-No-More]

^because you guys are so scary.

Nice to know the Laker arrogance extends to their fans as well.

You may not think the Blazers are scary, but they definitely present a tougher challenge than the Hornets minus David West.

BNM

 

[Mamba]

Nice to know the Laker arrogance extends to their fans as well.

You may not think the Blazers are scary, but they definitely present a tougher challenge than the Hornets minus David West.

BNM

Any other common sense you wanna drop on me? Of course you guys present a bigger challenge.

 

[Shooter]

So Kobe could have called him an asshole, or a douchbag, or an idiot, and there wouldn't have been a fine. But he calls him a ***got and all hell breaks loose. How ridiculous is that.

 

[KevinJBonn]

This is why we're so lucky to have our team. In this new era no Blazer has come close to conducting himself in such a way. No towel throwing, chair punching, slur yelling, or any of that in games. Our guys wont embarrass us like that.

I don't think the fine was enough. He should be sealed in a room with Steve Blake for 24 hours and have to share chicken noodle soup from the same bowl to up his chances of infection. How's that for star treatment?

 

[maxiep]

So Kobe could have called him an asshole, or a douchbag, or an idiot, and there wouldn't have been a fine. But he calls him a ***got and all hell breaks loose. How ridiculous is that.

I don't care what he called him; I care that he wasn't given another T and chucked from the game. There are two rulebooks in the NBA and it drives me nuts.

 

[Boob-No-More]

So Kobe could have called him an asshole, or a douchbag, or an idiot, and there wouldn't have been a fine.

Link please. Did someone from the league office actually say that, or are you just making assumptions and jumping conclusions? As much as I think he is one, I just can't picture David Stern releasing a statement containing the word "douchbag", let alone saying it's OK to call a referee one.

But he calls him a ***got and all hell breaks loose. How ridiculous is that.

No more ridiculous than jumping to conclusions without any evidence to support them.

BNM

 

[DaLincolnJones]

I don't care what he called him; I care that he wasn't given another T and chucked from the game. There are two rulebooks in the NBA and it drives me nuts.

This has come full circle, and yet some people refuse to accept that Kobi gets away once again.

Mamba, How could the refs not see his outburst? Everyone else did. Anyone else yells names at a ref and acts like that after a foul gets Td up.

 

[Mamba]

This has come full circle, and yet some people refuse to accept that Kobi gets away once again.

Mamba, How could the refs not see his outburst? Everyone else did. Anyone else yells names at a ref and acts like that after a foul gets Td up.

How do you know "everyone else did." It looked like Two of the refs had their backs turned to Kobe. I'm not saying they didn't see it, but it could be a possibility. And players get away with barking and throwing things all the time. This is being magnified because it was caught on national tv an because you Blazer fans HATE Kobe. You don't find anyone else talking about his outburst. Yelling the gay slur is what caused the fine and now the media
Hoopla.