Kobe Bryant's Elbow and Jameer Nelson's Chin Get Acquainted

As Derek Fisher rightfully enjoys his time in the spotlight today, it's impossible to watch the replay of his overtime dagger last night without also noticing Kobe Bryant's right elbow connect with Jameer Nelson's chin. The blow sent Nelson sprawling to the floor just as the man he left to double team Bryant drained a wide-open (and ultimately game-winning) three.

Let's face it, Kobe has a history of sending messages with his elbows -- just ask Ron Artest, or Shane Battier, or Manu Ginobili, or Marko Jaric ... Did the referees swallow their whistles simply because it was late in the game?

I've watched the replay at least a dozen times, and (unlike most of the examples I linked above) I'm absolutely convinced the contact was incidental -- Nelson rushed in just as Bryant picked up his dribble and raised his arms to pass. If anything, Nelson was just as responsible for contact as Bryant, not that it makes him feel any better. From ESPN's Chris Broussard:

"I doubt that [Kobe] did it on purpose,'' Nelson said. "My ears are ringing right now. But the ref's not going to call that.''

Maybe they would have called it had the play happened in the first, second or third quarters -- but you're almost never going to see that call made with 30 seconds left in an overtime period, just like you're almost never going to see an official call goaltending as time expires in a tie game.

Let's face it, if the refs called the game by the letter of the law in Games 2 and 4, there's a decent chance the Magic would be one win away from the title instead of the Lakers. But no matter how much the Magic complain about preferential treatment ("There were times [Kobe] was out there cursing the refs out and they weren't calling technical fouls,'' Alston told Broussard. "I would get ejected [for that], but they won't eject Kobe''), no one can deny that the Lakers have played with the most poise in pressure situations this series.

Perhaps the refs could have done more to help the Magic stay in Thursday's game, but they're certainly not the ones who pushed the Magic out of it, not on a night when the Magic attempted 17 more free throws than the Lakers (37 to 20) but converted at a pitiful 59.5% clip. There's no way around it -- the Magic brought this situation upon themselves.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

6-12-2009 @ 8:21AM

jtkik said...

An utterly ridiculous article. I love how all of the Laker big men were in foul trouble right out the gate with BS ticky tack crap fouls, and they all had to sit much of the first half. I love how at the end of the game Fish gets called for a foul during a reb scrap for having his hand on Howard's back but not even moving him, while Howard has his hand on Gasol's back as he's shoving him to the floor, and Howard goes to the line. Riiiight. I love how the Magic had something like 18 free throws in the 4th quarter and OT to the Lakers 2, and Kobe's being mauled by multiple defenders. Riiiight. Orlando didn't deserve for Howard to hit either of those free throws at the end. Sometimes the basketball gods decide enough is enough, and they step in and stop corrupt and/or incompetent refs from changing a series by unfairly giving a game to one team or another. The Lakers are the best team without doubt and have been repeatedly screwed by bad calls throughout these playoffs, but they are overlooked by those who would rather focus on Laker non fouls that were not called, or even inventing non calls on non fouls, like the Gasol goaltending insanity after the end of game 2, while Howard actually DID goal tend in that game with his hand through the bottom of the bucket to "block" a Gasol dunk earlier. Of course it was called a block. Riiiight. Tonight, Nelson ran into Kobe's elbow every bit as much as Kobe threw it out, and as Magic Johnson said, that's championship basketball! You're playing for a world championship. I love how the only calls or non calls mentioned are always when the Lakers win, despite the many times they got screwed earlier and have been throughout. On that note, the Lakers are about to finish their season-long mission. You need to lose your obvious bias for Orlando or anybody else playing L.A., or whatever it is. It makes for very ridiculous reading without much credibility. Oh, and stick a fork in Orlando.

6-12-2009 @ 8:46AM

Matt Watson said...

Did you actually read the article? I basically said what you did.

6-12-2009 @ 11:14AM

No, Matt, you didn't say what I said. The "let's face it" and "letter of the law" and "Magic would be one win from title" stuff is crap and I certainly never said it. It's suggests the Lakers are getting non-calls on fouls going their way to directly decide these games, and it's ridiculous. The Kobe elbow last night was incidental, and it would have been insane to call a foul there, especially with as many fouls as Howard got away with, as he has often, and as several ridiculous ticky-tack calls put the Laker starting frontcourt on the bench most of the first half, as Howard just bangs and shoves away at will. Riiight.

And Gasol had nothing to do with Lee missing that shot at the end of game two, as your link to that is apparently supposed to suggest. Any contact Gasol made with that net or the rim was feather-like, and AFTER the ball was on it's way bouncing over it towards the floor. No goal tend there and no reason to call any goaltending, unless, again, it's called on Howard when he stuck his hand through the bottom of the rim to "block" Gasol's dunk and two points. Why isn't that mentioned in your so-called article? Why isn't Howard shoving Gasol on to the floor last night mentioned? With NO foul called while Fisher picks one up instead for having his hand touching Howard's back with no force. What about that? That doesn't count, Matt? No "letter of the law" there when Howard blatantly shoved Gasol down?

How about Howard's "history"? How many times did Howard foul out against Cleveland for the same crap he's getting away with against L.A.? It looked pretty damn obvious last night that the refs were trying to keep Orlando in this series. But "Kobe's elbow" is the title of your article. Riiiight. I guess some won't be happy unless Orlando has ALL of the calls go their way.

6-12-2009 @ 4:09PM

That link was Phil Jackson himself admitting it was goaltending. If you're so blinded by fandom that you can't even accept it when your favorite team's coach admits a mistake was made, there's no use discussing this.

6-12-2009 @ 10:16PM

That's nice, Matt. Whatever Phil (who of course has a long history of off the wall comments to the press) was trying to accomplish with that comment is anyone's guess, but it's blatantly obvious Gasol did not goaltend nor have any impact whatsoever on that ball or that rim, by any reasonable and objective viewer with even one working eye.

I notice you have no answer for the Dwight Howard non-call on his clear and blatant goaltend of Gasol's earlier dunk in that same game, nor his other non-called goaltends, nor anything else, so it's clear where your "fandom" resides. Bad calls against L.A. don't matter to you, only those real or invented against the other team. You're right, there's no use discussing this any further, nor reading your tilted articles.

6-12-2009 @ 8:37AM

obamaizadope said...

Nelson's chin ran into Kobe's elbow, and Howard could be called for a foul every single time down the floor. Those elbows of his should be registered as lethal weapons..

6-12-2009 @ 9:41AM

hilryshaves said...

It's a miracle Howard hasn't broken anyone's ribs yet..

6-12-2009 @ 8:45AM

Martin said...

The author clearly lets his bias get in the way of his "journalistic" responsibilities, but what's new on Fanhouse. If the refs called the game according to the letter of the law, Howard would have fouled out in the first quarter. He was constantly slamming into his defender to establish offensive position and pushing Gasol off the court for his defensive rebounds. There was also the replay of the airball by Kobe where the slo-mo replay conclusively showed that the defender hit Kobe's wrist and hand as Kobe released the ball. Even if the refs thought that the defender had touched the ball rather than the hand/wrist, it should have been ball out of bounds for the Lakers. But the refs gave the Magic the ball. So Magic fans (and the author is clearly one) need to recognize that bad calls even out.

6-12-2009 @ 9:42AM

r0bl0w said...

You idiot... You must have not noticed that Howard was pushing off Gasol the whole night because thats how Gasols play dictated that.. You even heard Gasol say out loud "He is too physical for my liking tonight" he said nothing about dirty or pushing off. And Gasol is the FIRST player to ever bitch and whine about calls. The calls went the Magics way for a good part of the game, however, this is very much the scenario with the Lakers more times than not. I seen plays where officials let the guys play good hard basketball on more than many plays last night. But what happened to Jameer Nelson was not the same... If you are going to give Kobe that cheap as foul where he "flops" on a "fake drive" when a players hand drops too low by bringing the ball up high in that sweeping motion..... Which Kobe gets 10 out of 10 times... Than why in the world did that elbow NOT get called? that was as terrible of a non call as you will ever see.

6-12-2009 @ 6:36PM

Roblow- You should learn at least a few of the rules of basketball before you start calling people names.
You say "Howard was pushing off Gasol the whole night because thats how Gasols play dictated that" and my response is Huh? How exactly did Gasol's play require Howard to shove Gasol off the court again and again? Last time I checked, the rules don't say that a player is entitled to shove another player out of the way.
Finally, Kobe's elbow was not a foul. An offensive player is allowed to move his arms as long as it is a natural basketball move. Kobe was raising the ball over his head. His elbow was close to his body, not sticking out. That is a basketball move the offensive player is entitled to make.

6-12-2009 @ 9:45AM

Senorkabob said...

Agreed. Magic lost this one, not the refs. ONE free throw at the end and we wouldve won. No one to blame but themselves. Or SVG for keeping Alston on the bench most of the 2nd half. Wtf was that. Dont get me started on the horrible throw-ins either.

6-12-2009 @ 10:28AM

penguit said...

Here's a hint for you all. Through the 4th quarter and overtime, Orlando shot 18 free throws to the Lakers 0.

Think about that.... 18-0. Watch the Lakers play.... Kobe was driving often, Gasol was posting up, and yet somehow, in a quarter and a half, the Lakers shoot ZERO free throws. You can say all you want about that elbow but that's even nearly negate the fact that the refs did everything they could to keep the Magic in that game.

And even Magic fans had to notice the apparent halo that Howard had around himself in the first half. Whenever anyone got NEAR him, it was an automatic Laker foul.

Honestly, I'm not a big conspiracy guy... and I hate when people suggest refs have agendas, etc, but last night's game sure had some interesting plot twists.

6-12-2009 @ 11:28AM

pemfred said...

The missed free throws lost the game for the Magic.

15 missed Free Throws. (Wow, where's Reggie Miller when you need him.)

The game should have been a blowout. The Magic gave it away. They could have been up by 30 if not for all the turnovers and missed opportunities.

Same as in game 2. They had a bunch of missed free throws down the stretch.

I think they are the team of the future if they can keep their key players together. They just need a little more pollish. They are obviously the more talented team in this series, just not the more experienced.

It took Shaq a Kobe a while to get past Stockton and Malone. It took the Pistons a long time to get past Boston, and it took Jordan years to get past the Pistons.

It's all about maturity, and the Magic are learning a lot right now.

Watch out for this team in the future. They are very, very good.

6-12-2009 @ 12:23PM

Steve! said...

Is anyone going to mention Mickael Pietrus punching Gasol in the back near the end of Overtime? The league needs to suspend him one game, just like Fisher was against Utah. This wasn't a shove, I watched the slow motion replay and he clearly clenched his fist, drew back and punched Gasol in the back with both fists. Unsportsmanlike, dirty and flagrent.

6-12-2009 @ 12:38PM

Bryan said...

Refs were trying to hand it to the magic in the first half.

Very inconsistent officiating in the second half.

6-12-2009 @ 12:43PM

otkcp said...

What does everyone expect from the WORST officials in ANY league, amateur or pro, in ANY sport in the world? During March Madness, I see maybe 5 bad calls in a week of basketball. In the NBA finals, where the worst NBA officials of them all work the games, I see at least 5 bad calls per half EVERY year!

All NBA cities need to pass an ordinance to outlaw hallucinating with a whistle in your mouth. Then Stern will have to hire good officials because NONE of his current officials could work anymore.

6-12-2009 @ 12:53PM

hatrick said...

This game was so biased on behalf of the Magic with many phantom fouls called on Gasol and Bynum; thus the article should be about yet another poor oficiating performance in the glorious NBA. Jameer Nelson should learn how to protect the perimeter and stop undermining his team's effort to win. Go Lakers!

6-12-2009 @ 1:25PM

newnlkm said...

The magic can't even win a game with the help of 3 blindfolded ref's. Blindfolded to the Laker's, that is. They should have called a foul on Jameer for running into Kobe's elbow, but we will take the 3, Howard get's away with more fouls than fouls called on him hmmm... let's see 3rd Quarter lakers shoot no free throw's to what magic's 17, and they still loose, thanks to the ref's for their blindness... If I was Phil I would be in jail for assault on the ref's, but I will just be a fan for the LAKERS, WORLD CHAMPION LAKER'S I mean............

6-12-2009 @ 1:44PM

Steve said...

Bryant, it's spelled "Kobe BRYANT's Elbow and Jameer Nelson's Chin Get Acquainted"

6-12-2009 @ 3:27PM

jahcontrol said...

Seriously 18 free throws to 0! in a entire QUARTER and OVERTIME!
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?
hey you can say maybe 18 to 10, 18 to 8 but to ZERO!
Not even saying Bynum out of the game in the 1st quater, (he is always out anyway), Gasol OUT in the 1st with 2 fouls too IN THE 1st quater, ok then you go to ODOM and lets see OUT In the 1st QUARTER!
SERIOUSLY!!!
MBENGA and Powell playing in the 1st quarter was ridiculous and lets not count that Fisher ended with 5 fouls.
and somebody who blocks 9 shots DID NOT ATTEMPT A SINGLE FOUL, then there are people who really are blaming the officials for the Magic Loose??
SERIOUSLY!!!
I mean every time Lebron was getting hit when he was going to the rim it was an automatically foul been called even Van Gundy was saying it, now Kobe do the same and gets hammered by 3 guys EVERY SINGLE TIME DURING THE ENTIRE GAME
NOT ONCE IT WAS CALLED A FOUL!
seriosly!!!!!!!1
Hey thanks god the officials where giving the game to the lakers otherwise I cannot imagine what would have happened