O.J. Mayo made an incredible drive down the base line to tie the game with the Clippers and 0.6 seconds left. It seemed like the game was all wrapped up and Dallas would live to fight five more minutes and close within one game of the eighth spot in the Playoffs.
Then Matt Barnes lobbed a Hail Mary baseball pass to Blake Griffin, in the paint one-on-one with Dirk Nowitzki. Griffin was able to get the ball turn around and flip a shot seemingly over his head into the basket for the win.
Except it wasn't for the win. Dirk Nowitzki sold a push and the refs bought it. Was it an offensive foul on Blake Griffin? You be the judge:
Griffin said after the game he did not think he pushed off that much. And certainly some pushing and jockeying is expected in a late-game play like this one. Is it worth calling though this late in the game?
Undoubtedly, flopping has been a major issue facing the NBA. The league has tried to take steps to combat it by warning and fining repeat offenders. Chris Paul though had a memorable flop earlier this week (the most egregious and worst one of the year most likely). And it appears as if Dirk Nowitzki gets away with one here.
And this one really mattered.
The Mavericks went on to win in overtime and climb to within one game of the final Playoff spot. The Jazz and Lakers might be crying foul (for legitimate reasons) at the end of the season.
Then again, the Clippers gave no excuses after the game. They should have executed better.
So flop or not is totally your call now.
