LeBron James: ‘I Don’t Need To Flop’
LeBron James has responded to the Chicago Bulls’ flopping accusations and he isn’t too pleased with having to deal with the situation in the first place. James spoke with the media during practice on Sunday and he revealed that he’s not a “flopper” at all.
“I don’t need to flop,” James said. “I play an aggressive game. I don’t flop. I’ve never been one of those guys.”
James’ response comes just days after the controversial play in Game 3 against the Bulls on Friday. In the first quarter, he got into a scuffle with Bulls’ center Nazr Mohammed that ended with a technical foul and an ejection.
Mohammed pushed James to the ground during the heat of the moment and the Bulls believe the Heat’s superstar exaggerated in his fall. The 28-year-old slid across the court in a dramatic scene though Mohammed’s shove wasn’t as harmful as it looked.
“From my angle, I just saw a guy flop,” Bulls’ coach Tom Thibodeau said after the game, which led to a $35,000 fine from the NBA.
LeBron James received the technical foul on the play while Nazr Mohammed was ejected from the game. Mohammed left the court to a stading ovation from the fans at the United Center.
The controversial play was critical for the Bulls, who were already without Luol Deng and Kirk Hinrich due to injury. The Heat went on to win Game 3 by a score of 104-94 to take a 2-1 series lead as James finished with 25 points.
The talk remains focused on the “flop,” but James won’t let it get the best of him as the series moves on to game 4 in Chicago on Monday.
“What I said is what I said, but I don’t want to get involved too much with what everybody else says about us, about me,” James added on Sunday. “It’s nothing I haven’t heard before in my career. It’s nothing. … I’m here to play basketball and do whatever it takes for our team to win. So what a coach and players say to me and about me, I don’t really care.”
The dispute will come to a rest on Monday night, or possibly get worse if the physical play keeps up. The series has been extremely aggressive and tensions are sure to rise again as the Bulls look to even the series at two games apiece.
Do you believe LeBron James flopped on purpose in Game 3?
[Image via Keith Allison]
