Flop, lock and drop it

Flopping used to be an art form, performed by only the best of the best in the NBA. It took a true champion to make a light tap look like a foul at the most opportune time.\nBut that was back when the NBA was actually a decent league filled with players who cared about the game and the overall perception of the league. \nNow we’re in the Conference Finals, wondering what happened. What has the league turned into? And why right now? I’m asking these questions because three of the game’s biggest floppers are ruining these two series, and one is killing the game on the whole.\nOne of these guys is Manu Ginobili, and he has got to stop. He is an incredibly talented player with an unbelievable ability to get to the basket and finish better than many in the league. But he flops more than a fish on land. Every game, he has at least one flop that makes Vanilla Ice’s career downfall look miniscule.\nHe’s not alone, though. Cleveland’s Anderson Varejao flopped well enough to cause Rasheed Wallace to run his mouth in a post-game interview, although that doesn’t take much. There’s also Andrei Kirilenko , who flops the least of the three, but still had one huge flop at the final game against the Warriors that ended up sealing the game and the series.\nMore and more flopping is happening each game, and it is getting difficult to watch.\nThe problem has arisen in the NBA at an inopportune time, when NBA Commissioner David Stern is under fire for other problems he has faced with the league. But it is still unclear why the flopping is just picking up now.\nI believe it is because of the increasing number of European players entering the league each year who grew up watching soccer players prance around flopping left and right. OK, that may be an unfair shot at soccer, which is truly a difficult sport. I’m just scared that soccer is going to beat out the NHL for a real TV contract, and that can’t happen.\nBut whatever the reason, it needs to stop. I’m sick of watching Ginobili run into a player as he runs down the court and then seeing him fly backwards, pretending that he’s been sacked by Ray Lewis. It is getting old.\nCommissioner Stern needs to add flopping to his “list of things I need to try not to screw up this summer” along with ludicrously leaving the bench during an altercation rule and Joey Crawford.\nSoccer and hockey both assess penalties for intentional flopping, and basketball needs to follow suit. \nBecause if I really wanted to watch a true flop, I’ll go to my memory bank and relive Reggie Miller’s brilliance.