During the recent playoff game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Brooklyn Nets, both Joel Embiid and James Harden received flagrant fouls for hitting opposing players in the groin area. While Embiid was given a Flagrant 1 for what appeared to be an attempt to kick Nic Claxton in the groin, Harden received a Flagrant 2 for hitting Royce O’Neale in the same area and was ejected. Some fans and commentators pointed out the disparity in the penalties despite similar offenses. Recently, an NBA analyst provided a unique perspective on the whole fiasco with a fan-minded analogy.

In Game 2 between the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings, Draymond Green was suspended for one game without pay for stomping on Domantas Sabonis’ chest. The incident occurred when Sabonis supposedly grabbed Green’s ankle, prompting him to step on his chest. While Sabonis was given a technical foul, Green received a Flagrant Foul 2 and was ejected from the game.

NBA analyst sheds light on the whole fiasco with a fan-centric analogy

During a recent discussion on ‘The Dan Patrick Show’ on the controversy surrounding the recent NBA playoff games, analyst Tim Legler shared his opinion on the recent set of ejections. He pointed out that if a player like Draymond Green can be ejected for retaliating when he was provoked, then Joel Embiid should have been ejected for the same reason too. 

had missed his target, the intention to hurt was clearly there. Although, Legler doesn’t necessarily think that either player should have been ejected. He detailed a unique perspective to justify not ejecting players for such minor offenses.

In Legler’s exact words, “I think they both should have been ejected. Now, look, I want to be clear about something. If it was solely up to me, neither one of those guys is probably getting ejected, okay? And I’ve got some reasons for that.”

“One is, the fans pay enough of a price during the regular season with the number of games that these guys don’t play with load management, the number of, you know, how much longer they take to come back from injuries than they used to. Now you’re also going to punish fans that want to watch playoff games by kicking guys out for stuff that really didn’t hurt anybody!”

Legler also chimed in on the disparate treatment received by Harden and Embiid, after many NBA legends, like Charles Barkley, had joked about the ridiculousness of the decisions.

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Legler weighs in on James Harden’s ejection

Legler also commented on how players like Sabonis and Claxton may have sold the situation, causing it to appear worse than it actually was, and expressed concern about fans being punished for incidents that didn’t cause any real harm. During the same discussion, Tim Legler expressed his surprise at the ejection of James Harden. He argued that the contact made by the defender and the momentum of Harden’s left hand made it an innocuous basketball play. 

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He questioned the referee’s verdict that Harden intentionally punched the defender in the groin, saying it was a short and abbreviated motion often used to fend off the defender and take the first dribble.

What do you think about the entire ejection controversy? Let us know in the comments down below.