http://ftw.usatoday.com/2018/02/did-zaza-pachulia-intentionally-fall-on-russell-westbrook
Discussion Questions:
- Do you believe this fall was intentional? Why or why not?
- If you believe the fall was intentional, how do you think Pachulia should be punished?
- What do you believe the criteria is/should be for determining whether or not falls similar to these are intentional?
I believe that Pachulia 100% fell on Westbrooks intentionally. If you watch the video in slow-mo, you can see that Pachulia looked at the situation and intentionally fell on his leg. If you look at side camera views, you can see that nothing tripped him up and he had to have fallen over deliberately. Another thing that led me to believe he did it intentionally was that he did not apologize at the end of the fall. Generally, if you hurt someone unintentionally you apologize but it was clear Pachulia did not care, and he walked away from it like it was nothing. My last reason is that Pachulia is known to be a dirty player, last year he took out a player named Kahi intentionally. This injury has put him out for over 1.5 seasons and is hurting his team. I think that there should be a punishment for what he has done. I think he should have a five-game suspension and a 10,000 dollar fine for what he has done. I believe this because Pachulia has done things like this in the past and if he is not shown this isn't ok, he may do it again. He also did it to Russell Westbrook who is the thunders star player, and he was playing very well which makes the play even worse. I think there are two factors you can use to know if it was intentional. The first being that you can look at all the camera angles and see if he was tripped up or if he saw the opportunity to make himself fall and hurt another player. It was clear this was on purpose…. The second factor is that you look at the player's history. You can see if he has a history of doing things like this and if he is a dirty player.
ReplyDeleteI believe that when Pachullia fell on Westbrook's leg, Pachulia had the intent to hurt him. After watching the video you can see that there were no forces acting on the Warrior player and fell without being pushed or being pulled down by another player. Before he falls Pachulia looks at what is happening on the ground and then aimed where to fall on Westbrook, which was the lower thigh and leg area. Also considering Pachulia's past you can infer that he was intentionally trying to fall on Westbrook's leg. Zaza Pachulia has been infamous in recent years for controversial physical plays that have resulted in the injuries of others. He has been deemed as a dirty player by the rest of the league due to the instances against Kawhi Leonard of the San Antonio Spurs, where Pachullia intentionally tried to injure Leonard's ankle. There should definitely be ramifications for the actions performed by this player and I think that if he is not punished for this there is no reason to think why Pachullia would not do something like this again. There should be some sort of suspension of several games and I think the NBA should be on close watch of players like Pachullia who put other player's safety at risk. In order to determine whether the play was dirty or not you have to examine if the player was making a basketball move or not, which means that the player was not intentionally trying to hit or harm another player but because of their basketball actions something harmful resulted.
ReplyDeleteI believe Zaza Pachulia had the intention of hurting Westbrook when he fell on him. The video showed that he just fell with no one else even coming into contact with him. Pachulia has been a dirty player for most of his career. He infamously tried to sprain Kawhi Leonard's ankle during the playoffs last year. Players like this should not be tolerated in any professional sports League and clearly don't belong either. Major league sports have seen their fair share of dirty players: Pachulia, Ndamukong Suh (NFL), and Sean Avery (NHL) to list a few. Players like this do not belong in professional sports. They are a danger to other players around them. Players like Pachulia should recieve life time bans from the sports they play for the safety of other players and to keep sports clean.
ReplyDeleteI feel as though Zaza did have the intent to fall on westbook, because zaza seemed to be falling but aimed his fall to be on top of westbrook. I think that zaza should either be suspended for like a game or given a fine to pay to the league or to westbrook himself. I think the critea should be whether or not the person is actually falling. In this case its ify because zaza fell but could've easily been able to stay. They should also take into account the history of the player, if he had any bad history with harming or harassing players and such. I also believe that they should look over the film of the person and see wether or not the person was in control of their body during the time of their fall and if so then it should be determined intentional.
ReplyDeleteI do believe that Pachulia’s fall was intentional. The video in the article clearly shows that no one pushed or pulled Pachulia down in any way that would make him fall. You can also see that as soon as he saw Westbrook fall, he took a few stutter steps with an eye on Westbrook’s legs, and then he fell right on top of them. Pachulia’s past incidents where he intentionally hurt other players are also influencing factors in proving that he purposefully hurt Westbrook. Another instance where Pachulia has been a dirty player is last year when he tried to sprain Kawhi Leonard’s ankle in the playoffs. Because he has intentionally tried to hurt other players before, it isn’t surprising if he repeats those actions. I think Pachulia should definitely be punished for intentionally trying to hurt another opponent because that type of behavior should be unacceptable in any league. Any punishment like suspension would be appropriate in this case and would hopefully prevent these situations from happening in the future.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Zaza Pachulia very much had the intent to fall on Russell Westbrook because wen he fell Zaza was not near any player and nobody even touched him so he had to have fallen on his own. I think that players like Zaza who are known as dirty players should be suspended or even kicked out of the NBA. I think that a player should only be kicked out is they cause multiple offenses and or ruined another players career on purpose. I think that its one thing if a player hurts another player on purpose but only does it once but it is a different situation if the player continues to play dirty. I think that dirty players should not be kicked out on their first offense rather they should be suspended one ore multiple games depending on how they hurt the other player. But if one player continuously plays dirty then they should be kicked out of the league because they could end up hurting many players and destroying some of their careers.
ReplyDeletePachulias' fall was definitely intentional on Russell Westbrook. He is renowned for his dirty plays on Kahawii Leonard twice, and he also has history with Russel Westbrook as well. His role he has on the warriors is to do the knitty gritty things that other players would not want to do. Zaza should face a lot of punishment from the league for attempting to hurt a player. It would not be the first time he injured a teams best player. The problem is the league has done a bad job making change and getting things done in general. In my opinion, it is usually obvious if a player intentional falls to hurt a player. NBA players aren't world class actors, nine times out of ten you can tell if a player is intentional.
ReplyDeleteI think Pachulia's fall was definitely intentional on Westbrook. In the article, it was stated how Zaza Pachulia is a veteran player who is known for playing dirtily. I think that he should face a lot of punishment for this, because he purposefully hurt one of the best players in the league, and the most powerful player on the Thunder. In the videos of the article, it is shown that Pachulia stares at the fallen Westbrook on the ground, and takes tiny steps after three seconds to jump on his legs. By hurting Russell Westbrook, he makes himself and the team look bad. I think the best way for the NBA to handle situations such as this one is to only suspend the player after multiple offenses of intentional fouls/injuries, and how hurt the player on the receiving end of the attack is.
ReplyDeleteYes I think the fall was clearly intentional. He was standing perfectly and when he saw Westbrook fall he threw himself of his legs. Zaza is known as a dirty player, and this is just another example. He should have been penalized at the time, and I think he should be suspended now. The only thing a player like that does is bring down the name of the NBA and of his team. I think it is difficult to determine whether falls are intentional based on a pre determined criteria. I feel that people have to use their best judgement, look at the situation as a whole, and who the players involved are and what there relationship is like.
ReplyDeleteZaza Pachulia, arguably the most useless player in the NBA when his antics are put to the side clearly had the intent of injuring Russell Westbrook on this play. Zaza is known around the league for his shenanigans because he is on the wrong end of hurting a lot of guys. On this play specifically you can tell that Zaza is nearly untouched before falling on Westbrook. The argument has been made that Zaza was slightly hooked in the back of his knee before falling and this combined with the fact that he is a clumsy person led to the fall. To me I find it ridiculous that being slightly hit in the back of the knee could cause all 275 pounds of Zaza to lose his balance. Even if this is the case Zaza looked to make no effort in dodging Westbrook's legs. This play was put into words best by Paul George, one of Westbrook's teammates, when he said "this was a planned fall, he timed his landing onto Russ' legs... it was Zaza making a Zaza play" another accurate quote from former NBA player Stephen Jackson when asked about the play on Undisputed was "Ball players know how to fall, we don't just land on guys legs like that, he clearly had the intent of hurting him" I think that these quotes alone are enough to prove that this was an intentional play, but just to add on many other current NBA players have spoke out about this topic and have said that the league needs to investigate Zaza's antics. In particular NBA coaching legend Greg Popovic even spoke out against Pachulia when he injured Kawhi Leonard in Last years conference finals. There is more than enough clear evidence that proves this play was intentional and that Zaza is a dirty player
ReplyDeleteI do believe that Zaza Pachulia intentionally fell on Westbrook. He has had a history of playing dirty and in this case, it is nearly impossible to try to defend him. There was no reason that he should have fell down besides hurting Westbrook. If you watch the replay you can clearly see that he wasn't mid-fall, but he paused, and then fell. I think he should have been punished when it happened and he should been at least suspended now. I think they should look at the replays from multiple angles to see if it was intentional. If you ask the people involved, they would say different things, wether it's the truth or not, and I would never believe Zaza because of his reputation as a dirty player.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Zaza did fall intentionally on to Westbrook. If you watch the video close you can see that he is not even touch by anyone and it looks like fell for no reason which he did. In the video he fell for no reason to tried to hurt Westbrook to help their chances of winning the game. I think that the NBA should do something about what is happening because these are what hurt players, teams and their careers. Many argue that he was tripped by Young hit him in the back of the knee that caused him to fall. Also he tried to catch himself with his arms which makes it look that it was not intentional. n my view though I believe that it was and that something should be done to stop players doing this.
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DeleteStarting off the discussion, having not watched the game myself that night, I wasn’t aware of the play. As we watched the play in class for the first time, not knowing of such a repetive history Zaza has when referring to intentional fouls, I didn’t think that the fall on Westbrook was intentional. In fact, it looked like he simply fell due to the loss of balance after Westbrook fell directly in front of him. After watching is again and again ins low motion, then discussing with classmates who were aware of Zaza’s past intentions, I had a much clearer understanding of how “dirty” of a player he was and where he stood in relation to the situation itself. After the failed shot attempt, and the fall between Westbrook and Young, Zaza was completely stable and standing behind the action. Almost immediately after Westbrook was down and vulnerable did Zaza “trip” and fall directly onto him. Excuses have been made and Zara has had too long of a list of intentional fouls in his career in the NBA. Something must be done reguarding his conduct and ability to maintain common curtesy on the court. Someone like him does not live up to the expectations of a fair player.
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DeleteI do not believe that Zaza intentionally fell on Russel Westbrook in order to cause harm or injury, I think that the discussion of him getting a suspension is ridiculous but I see their argument. It does not help Zaza's case that he has a reputation for bad fouls or dirty plays. This is like any sport, if you have the reputation of being dirty, referees are more likely to call fouls on you or give you penalties such as yellow or red cards in soccer, fouls against your team in Football or ejections from the game. I think that Zaza was tangled and the only way for him to go was land on Westbrook. Although I think if Zaza didnt mean too, then he should of definitely helped Westbrook up, to prove to everyone it was an accident. I think this would of helped his case and would've prevented all these discussions about suspension. I think for a dirty play to be intentional the player has to be "hurt" or so clear that its intentional. If you're going to get suspended then I think it has to be 100% clear that there was intent to hurt the opponent.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that Zaza intentionally fell on Russel Westbrook, nor did he attempt to injure him. I Think that if a big guy like Zaza wanted to intentionally hurt someone, he would. While Zaza does have a history of questionable plays similar to this, I don't think there is anything in this clip that is clear enough to make that assumption. Also when looking at the play in slowmotion you can see a foot get stuck behind Zaza'a knee. Causing him to buckle to the ground. Which we all know is possible because I'm sure everyone has been hit in that spot and fallen. I think the situation could've been handled a little better, maybe Zaza could have said something to westbrook or helped him up. However either way I believe that people over reacted and jumped to a conclusion way too fast.
ReplyDeleteThis fall was definitely intentional. Growing up watching basketball, and watching Zaza throughout his career, he's a dirty player. He's well known for these type of plays, where it puts other players at danger. There was a lot of emotion running through the Warriors at the time as well, as they were down 20 points against the Thunder, so Zaza might have been attempting to flip the script. Taking out Westbrook would boost the Warriors to a definite Finals appearance, as the Thunder (besides the Rockets) are the Warriors only big competitor. Besides that, the Warriors could probably care less if Zaza made a play like that, hurt Westbrook for the season, and got suspended because Zaza is probably around the 6-7th option on the team, so losing him and taking out Westbrook might seem like a good idea at the time for a team competing in the West. With that being said, I think Zaza got very lucky and didn't actually hurt Westbrook, because if he did he should be suspended for the rest of the season. But since he didn't, now it's easy to say it was "unintentional" and nothing bad happened so we should just let it be. Player history, game time situation, season situation and body movements should all be part of the criteria of deeming a fall like this intentional.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching this video it is abundantly clear that Zaza Pachulia intentionally fell on Russell Westbrook. When Pachulia went down, Westbrook was still standing. It was not until Westbrook looked over to see Pachulia on the ground that he began to fall. Additionally, right after Westbrooks head turns to the side, he stutters, only for half of a second, but it is very noticable. Though I am not very familiar with the fouling rules in basketball - I think that this should go for sports across the board - if one player intentionally tries to harm another player, they should be punished with some type of foul. What degree of foul depends on the situation, but it is not safe for one player to be threatened by another. I think that if Pachulia had known that there was a severe consequence for falling intentionally on another player, he would not have done so.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the fall was intentional. You can clearly see in the video that he could have kept his balance and remained standing but he decided to fall on purpose in order to injure the other player. I believe that Pachoulia should be punished for doing this. Even though nobody got hurt, someone could have been seriously injured. I think that Pachoulia should be suspended for a game or two because of his actions. If he had broken another players leg they would be out for the whole season and someone who attempts to do that on purpose cannot get away with it. It is very difficult to tell whether a fall is intentional or not because it is easy to make it look like an accident and it is hard to argue with someone and say they fell on purpose. That being said, I think the falls should be reviewed by several people and a vote should be taken on whether or not it was intentional. They should also look at the players past and see if they have a history of trying to do this type of thing.
ReplyDeleteI think that the fall was purposeful. It is clear to anyone who watches the video that there was something not right about the way he went down. This kind of playing is harmful to players on both teams because of the potential injuries that a player could receive. Although I do not think Zaza had a direct intention to prevent an opponent from playing through causing an injury, it was still a dirty move. Given that the fall was intentional I think Zaza should receive a minor punishment perhaps a 1 or 2 game suspension. Although it was slimy move, and very immature it did little to hinder to other team. I think that it is difficult for anyone to determine if a fall was intentional or not, but with instances like this it is clear what was intended. I think the NBA should decide on a case by case basis regarding situations like this.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that Zaza Pachulia intentionally fell on Russell Westbrook's leg. There is clearly a tangle of players' legs on the ground after the rebound including Zaza's own legs, and it did not appear that he came down with any considerable force on Westbrook's leg. Nick Young's leg also clearly hooks around Zaza's left knee before he falls, so that could have aided in his fall to the ground. In all, there are so many what ifs that it would be impossible to conclude beyond reasonable doubt that Zaza Pachulia was trying to intentionally harm Russell Westbrook. In situations where players do intentionally target other players, I would recommend rule by committee, where a group of men within the NBA decide on whether it was punishable and what the punishment should be, anywhere from a small fine to a 5 game suspension.
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