Make no mistake – this is a blatant travel by Corey Brewer. But it’s not as bad as the internet is making it out to be. Watch the Minnesota Timberwolves wing take multiple tiny steps after dribbling en route to a jam in his team’s 111-92 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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Like the vast majority of people that have laughed at Brewer’s tip-toes, you probably counted five or six steps from the time he picked up his last dribble. That’s not wrong. The Minnesota Timberwolves wing indeed takes that many strides between his final bounce and rising for the flush.
But there’s grey area that’s being ignored. Have you ever noticed how point guards often push the ball far out in front of themselves in the backcourt to get a head of steam? Derrick Rose first comes to mind as a guy that employs this tactic.
Rose will often take three steps after forcing the ball ahead before he dribbles again, but it’s not a travel – he’s never actually in contact with the ball.
A similar thinking applies to Brewer here. If you look closely, Brewer’s first two foot-touches occur when the ball is in the air in front of him. Those don’t count in terms of a traveling violation. The ones that do begin here:
And yes, Brewer still takes three steps after finally gathering the ball.
It’s a travel. No doubt. The blatant one that has the internet in a tizzy? Not quite.
What do you think?
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