Paul's punch
I like Chris Paul and think the Wake Forest point guard is a fine young man. But he made an awful mistake in Sunday night's game against State and, despite his suspension from Wake's ACC tourney game Friday and contrite statement today, he and his team got off easy ...
Paul should have been ejected from the game immediately after punching State's star player Julius Hodge in the groin area, causing Hodge to collapse in agony. If officials didn't see it, they should have reviewed the video. That would have been an appropriate action and delivered a swift measure of justice. Paul staying in the game ultimately led to Wake's victory and might have cost State an NCAA tournament bid. Missing the first game of the ACC tourney will hurt Wake and help Wake's opponent (which could be State again), but Wake has all week to prepare for the game without Paul. Immediate ejection following his action would have put Wake at a clear disadvantage right then, as it deserved.
Also, this probably should cost Paul consideration for the ACC player of the year award. Duke's J.J. Redick and Carolina's Sean May (my favorite) ought to be top contenders. Both have displayed good sportsmanship all year.
Comments (6)
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I don't think a foul can be called off the video. I thought they could only use that for possession calls.
Posted on March 7, 2005 6:01 PM
You may be right. There should be some mechanism by which officials can get some help in such cases. Everyone else seemed to know exactly what happened. Why should the refs be the only ones who are clueless?
Posted on March 7, 2005 6:18 PM
Technical fouls can be called based on video. In the Charlotte-Memphis game there was an altercation between Charlotte's Chris Nance and a Memphis player that let to assistant coaches on both sides coming onto the floor and yelling at each other. The refs missed the initial incident (which happend during a dead ball) and reviewed the tape. They ended up charging technical fouls to both benches, which offset each other.
Posted on March 7, 2005 10:47 PM
Two thoughts/questions:
I haven't seen many Wake games this year. Is Chris Paul a dirty ball player?
Of all the possible victims of Paul's aggression, Hodge is the least credible in the conference. Who knows just how hurt he really was?
Posted on March 8, 2005 2:19 PM
First off, Paul's action is inexcusable. Let me say that right now. He has apologized and I do believe he's sorry and deserves the suspension. I also agree that he should've been ejected, but Hodge is NOT innocent. If you watch the video of several seconds before the incident, you can clearly see Hodge grabbing and twisting Paul's injured left hand. Hodge is well-known as a dirty player, and I think he did a bit of acting. I think dual-ejections were in order, so who knows how the game would have ended if that were the case.
I wouldn't call Paul a dirty player, but he definitely has a mean streak. He talks a lot, and he doesn't back away from anyone. He plays hard and is often in the middle of skirmishes. However, he also is the most abused player in the ACC. He gets pushed around every game. He was the victim of an elbow to the head from UVa's Elton Brown, and the story from the Dook game is well documented. Paul usually takes the high road and just plays his game, but this time he made a mistake. Again, let me say Paul was totally in the wrong, but the whole incident would never have occurred had Hodge not been the one playing dirty. Frankly, I'm glad to see him get a taste of his own medicine.
Posted on March 9, 2005 4:54 PM
Is that a voice from spring break? Having a good time in Florida?
Call your mom sometime. And say hi to the guys.
Posted on March 9, 2005 5:34 PM