Jordan Hamilton of the Nuggets was tossed in the early part of the fourth quarter when an official spotted him cocking his arm like he was going to punch Thunder rookie Steven Adams. Hamilton didn’t actually punch Adams at all, and just ran back up the court, but it was enough to get ejected.
Here’s the incident in question. Tell us if it looks like Jordan Hamilton punched anything but air?
I mean, seriously? NBA referees are selfless individuals that patrol the game for the fans, and we can’t thank them enough for the tough job they do. But when we see stuff like this, we wonder whether tonight’s crew floated into Thought Police territory.
Hamilton might have connected on Adams’ upper arm with his right fist, but we thought he was thinking about connecting with that cocked, left arm. If Hamilton connected with Adams using his other hand (one not viewable in the GIF), it’s a punch, but hardly one worth tossing him. Then again, it can’t be a double standard, so the power of the punch doesn’t matter and the refs made the right call. But it sure looks in that replay like Hamilton just reared back like he was going to throw a punch, and thought better of it. Being a refereee is difficult, and they took plenty of time deciding on the severity of the punishment, but it certainly didn’t seem like a flagrant 2, even after repeated viewings.
Did Hamilton actually hit him, and if so, was it a Flagrant 2?
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