Glenn
12-20-2007, 01:11 PM
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Renee (Troy): I’m wondering why Charlotte didn’t ask for more than they got in the trade that sent Nazr Mohammed to the Bobcats.
Langlois: Charlotte desperately wanted a big man who could hold his ground in the middle well enough to allow the Bobcats to play Emeka Okafor at power forward. Okafor will be a restricted free agent next summer and there’s some speculation they want to appease him by not forcing him to play center. But I can tell you that the reaction around the league was similar to yours, not so much from the players that switched teams but for the salary disparity. While the Pistons took on two players with expiring contracts, Charlotte absorbed the roughly $20 million Mohammed has coming to him over the three seasons after this one. To put that in perspective, Phoenix shipped Kurt Thomas to Seattle over the summer for nothing – and also had to send two future No. 1 draft picks along just to coax the Sonics into accepting his salary. It is very unusual for an NBA trade to involve such a significant difference in salaries changing hands – unless the team that’s taking back the salaries is getting a star player in the bargain. That wasn’t the case here.
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Ron (Warren): Is there any chance Rasheed Wallace signs another extension to play beyond the 2008-09 season with the Pistons? Any thoughts on what this team needs after playing the first quarter of the season?
Langlois: Great question on Rasheed, Ron – but there’s no great answer. It’s way too soon to tell. My hunch is they’ll let it play itself out and see where they’re at after the playoffs end in 2009 when Wallace’s contract expires. Rasheed will be 35 when the 2009-10 season starts. Big men can and often do still have productive seasons left at that age. This decision will depend on many factors. How many years will Rasheed want? At what price? Will other suitors be willing to go more years at a higher price than the Pistons? How well will he still be playing? How ready will Amir Johnson and Cheikh Samb be to assume greater roles? Who else will the Pistons have added via the draft or free agency by then? As for your second question, what this team needs most is a month of everyone available – Rodney Stuckey and the two Charlotte newcomers included – so they can better assess their needs. There’s still two months until the trade deadline.
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Fred (Charlotte): I’m a Bobcats fan and was very upset about the trade of Walter Herrmann. He’s a really good shooter, rebounder and defender, given a chance. He works very hard. Charlotte will regret this trade in the long run because of Herrmann.
Langlois: Nice to hear for Pistons fans, Fred. The driving force behind the trade from a Pistons perspective was the salary-cap implications, but Joe Dumars went out of his way to say he liked both players the Bobcats sent away so much that he’d asked about their availability in previous deals. I’m curious why Sam Vincent didn’t seem to have much use for Herrmann, as well as he played late last season when given a chance to play. And I thought Brezec looked like a nice young big man early in his Charlotte career, too. There are dozens of players on NBA benches – and dozens more toiling outside the NBA – whose careers might be far different given the right surroundings. The Pistons hope that’s the case with Herrmann and Brezec.
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Bryan (Detroit): I might have agreed with those petitioning for Amir Johnson to get more playing time this season – until I saw him play. His lack of experience and low basketball IQ seem evident. My suspicion is that after his three-year contract is up, Joe Dumars will decide not to give him a big contract. My question: Is Amir Johnson a money pit?
Langlois: The Pistons sure don’t believe so, Bryan. That said, signing any young player to a multiyear contract is strictly a matter of projecting where you think he’ll be when the contract expires. There are no guarantees, but the Pistons feel very good that Amir’s natural talent coupled with his work ethic and passion for basketball give him the best possible chance to realize his potential. Yeah, signs of his inexperience are still apparent, but I have not seen a low basketball IQ.
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Clifford: Utah has been tough on the Pistons lately. What do we need to do to beat them since they could possibly come out of the West and take on the Pistons in the NBA Finals?
Langlois: The Jazz had lost 7 of 8 heading into Wednesday night’s game at Charlotte, Clifford, and were clinging to the final playoff spot in the West. The Pistons took them to the final possession in their loss at Utah last season. They lost at home last January in Chauncey Billups’ first game back after sitting out eight games with a leg injury, and when they lost to them last month at The Palace they were without Rasheed Wallace. The Jazz are a tough matchup, no question, but the Pistons would be happy to take their chances in the NBA Finals. Utah has a lot of minefields to tiptoe through before that happens.
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Ryan (Toledo): Toledo is building a brand new arena that’s supposed to be among the best and they plan to host indoor football, hockey and basketball. What do you think the chances are that the Fort Wayne Mad Ants come to Toledo. I could be your on-site scout and reporter.
Langlois: If that happens, Ryan, consider yourself the front-runner for the job. If that arena is as nice as you say, then I’d have to think Toledo would be near the front of the line to get a D-League team – it wouldn’t necessarily have to come at Fort Wayne’s expense.
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Ryan (Grand Rapids): Now that we have more trade flexibility with contracts, is there any chance the Pistons revisit the J.R. Smith trade?
Langlois: From everything I’ve been able to round up, Ryan, there was never any first “visit” of the J.R. Smith trade. The kid oozes talent, but he’s been such a problem child that it’s hard to see the Pistons – with Joe Dumars’ track record of steering clear of just such players – risking their locker room when things are going smoothly. Then again, it’s also true that the Pistons have strong enough leadership in place that they could probably manage one quirky character. Bottom line: I wouldn’t say impossible, but I would say highly improbable.
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Fran (Southfield): With two new players, a commitment to playing the younger guys and Rodney Stuckey coming back, who will be on the inactive list?
Langlois: Cheikh Samb and two from among the group of Flip Murray, Lindsey Hunter and Walter Herrmann would be my guess.
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Andrea (Battle Creek): I was sad to see Nazr traded. He was a kind man and a real people person. I don’t really know the new Pistons. I saw Herrmann play for his national team and remember seeing Brezec in a commercial for the NBA. I saw Brezec played a little in his first game. Will Herrmann get to play?
Langlois: Brezec will probably be given the opportunities Mohammed was getting. What he does with them will determine how much more or less he plays. Herrmann’s in a tough spot. He can play either forward spot, but there’s too much competition ahead of him at power forward. If Jarvis Hayes continues to struggle with his shooting, it’s possible Herrmann will get a crack at backup minutes behind Tayshaun Prince.
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Leslie (Brooklyn, N.Y.): Once Stuckey gets acclimated, is it possible he could join a second unit that features Hayes at shooting guard and Herrmann at small forward with Maxiell and Brezec?
Langlois: It all depends on matchups, I suppose. That unit wouldn’t work against teams that went with the current NBA trend toward quicker, more athletic lineups. On the other hand, you’d have a lineup that could stretch opposing defenses with the perimeter shooting of Hayes and Herrmann and Brezec’s ability to step outside. I think Flip Saunders would feel more comfortable with Afflalo alongside Stuckey and then either Hayes or Herrmann at small forward.
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Kevin (Lathrup Village): I know Primoz and Walter won’t get much playing time right away, but please tell me they’ll at least get shots to prove themselves. Primoz used to light up the box score in 2004-05 and Herrmann couldn’t miss at the end of last year. Also, what do you think are the chances of their wishes to retire as Pistons happening?
Langlois: They’ll have to make an impression in practices first and then take advantage of limited opportunities in games, but they have one thing going for them, Kevin: Joe Dumars did not just trade for them because he was looking to dump a contract. He and his staff like both players. That counts for something. As for Brezec’s nice numbers in his first few years with Charlotte, he’s a capable player but let’s also remember that he was playing with a very thin roster back then. Herrmann did play very well down the stretch last season, which makes it surprising he didn’t really get much of a chance with new coach Sam Vincent.
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Gil (Charlotte, N.C.): If a player jumped from behind the NBA 3-point line and dunked, would it be worth three points or two?
Langlois: Well, I can’t find a definitive answer, but until someone tells me otherwise, it has to be worth three points. If a shooter goes up for a jump shot with both feet behind the 3-point line, releases the shot while he’s still in the air and comes down with a foot on or inside the line, it’s a 3-pointer. Same thing here. It’s where your feet are when you leave the ground, not where you land. If you know of anyone who can demonstrate this move, Gil, there are 30 NBA general managers who’ll pay you a handsome finder’s fee.
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Travis (Chicago): Antonio McDyess is playing inspired basketball. What I watch the games, I keep confusing him with Jason Maxiell because they’re both playing with such high energy. Does it make you wonder if we would have benefited from starting him at the beginning of last year instead of Nazr Mohammed? Also, what does it mean when a player is waived as the Pistons did with Dupree?
Langlois: I’ll be a lot of people have had similar moments of doubt whether a block or a swooping rebound was McDyess or Maxiell, Travis. Good call. The Pistons have used McDyess cautiously since acquiring him as a free agent following the 2004 season because he was coming off three injury-ravaged seasons. But the way he’s responded to a heavier workload this year naturally makes you wonder how much more they could have gotten out of him last year. Then again, if you believe everything happens for a reason, maybe the reason they can push McDyess a little harder this year is because the lighter workload of the past three seasons has allowed him to gradually recuperate from injuries to both knees. To waive a player in the NBA means he’s free to sign with any other team – but, yes, he collects every penny on his contract. Some rookies and young players are signed to contracts that guarantee them a certain amount but not the full value of the deal – that’s the deal the Pistons and Sammy Mejia had – and others become fully guaranteed past a certain date, which is why in the last week the Clippers waived Ruben Patterson and the Celtics waived Brandon Wallace.
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Christal: Like Manu comes off the bench for San Antonio, I think Rip Hamilton should for the Pistons and they can start Flip Murray. He’ll grow and so will the team.
Langlois: Flip Saunders was asked that question about a month ago and said it was not a consideration. If they were to ever consider bringing Hamilton off the bench, I don’t think it would be Murray they’d make a starter.
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Dena-Rose (New York): I noticed in a recent Mailbag that a reader indicated that a fan at a recent game perceived the Pistons organization, and Joe Dumars in particular, as being racist because of the makeup of the roster. Having been born to parents of Afro-Caribbean and Chinese heritage and Irish and German heritage, I am continuously amazed and perturbed that race continues to be a divisive factor in American society in the 21st century. With the current state of the world – and of this country, in particular – the dearth of Caucasian or Latino players on the Pistons’ roster warrants this much attention?
Langlois: I hear you, Dena-Rose. I chose to post and answer the question because every now and then a low rumble bubbles to the surface. I get the sense that it’s a non-issue for 99 percent of Pistons fans, and I’ll mark that as progress – it would have gotten far more attention a generation ago. My hunch is that by the next generation, if it’s noticed at all it will be as a curiosity or the subject of scholarly debate as to its causes, not of derision and innuendo. Ironically enough, the day after that Mailbag was posted, the Pistons made a trade that added Primoz Brezec and Walter Herrmann.
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Duane (Falls Church, Va.): Is there a clear definition of what constitutes a technical foul and is it consistently applied? If there is none, or if it isn’t consistently applied, then they deserve another name – arbitrary fouls or discretionary fouls or capricious fouls.
Langlois: Some technical fouls are clearly deserved and would be called by 99 percent of officials 99 percent of the time. Most, though, are simply a matter of interpretation and level of tolerance on the part of an individual referee – who could be influenced by any number of factors, including where the game is being played, his particular mood at the time, and, mostly, his history with the player in question. It’s the nature of the beast. There are countless subjective decisions to be processed on each possession of an NBA game. That’s why officials hold more influence over a basketball game than their football or baseball peers do – though the home-plate umpire, obviously, has a huge impact depending on his strike zone. Hockey is another matter. Because of the huge influence of the power play, hockey referees are even more integral to a game’s outcome than basketball officials. Yet because so many more calls are made in basketball than hockey – and because the majority of those calls are open to interpretation – the environment is created for dispute between player and official that doesn’t exist to nearly that degree in other sports. And so – long way around – the necessity for the technical foul is there to draw the line on debate.
Renee (Troy): I’m wondering why Charlotte didn’t ask for more than they got in the trade that sent Nazr Mohammed to the Bobcats.
Langlois: Charlotte desperately wanted a big man who could hold his ground in the middle well enough to allow the Bobcats to play Emeka Okafor at power forward. Okafor will be a restricted free agent next summer and there’s some speculation they want to appease him by not forcing him to play center. But I can tell you that the reaction around the league was similar to yours, not so much from the players that switched teams but for the salary disparity. While the Pistons took on two players with expiring contracts, Charlotte absorbed the roughly $20 million Mohammed has coming to him over the three seasons after this one. To put that in perspective, Phoenix shipped Kurt Thomas to Seattle over the summer for nothing – and also had to send two future No. 1 draft picks along just to coax the Sonics into accepting his salary. It is very unusual for an NBA trade to involve such a significant difference in salaries changing hands – unless the team that’s taking back the salaries is getting a star player in the bargain. That wasn’t the case here.
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Ron (Warren): Is there any chance Rasheed Wallace signs another extension to play beyond the 2008-09 season with the Pistons? Any thoughts on what this team needs after playing the first quarter of the season?
Langlois: Great question on Rasheed, Ron – but there’s no great answer. It’s way too soon to tell. My hunch is they’ll let it play itself out and see where they’re at after the playoffs end in 2009 when Wallace’s contract expires. Rasheed will be 35 when the 2009-10 season starts. Big men can and often do still have productive seasons left at that age. This decision will depend on many factors. How many years will Rasheed want? At what price? Will other suitors be willing to go more years at a higher price than the Pistons? How well will he still be playing? How ready will Amir Johnson and Cheikh Samb be to assume greater roles? Who else will the Pistons have added via the draft or free agency by then? As for your second question, what this team needs most is a month of everyone available – Rodney Stuckey and the two Charlotte newcomers included – so they can better assess their needs. There’s still two months until the trade deadline.
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Fred (Charlotte): I’m a Bobcats fan and was very upset about the trade of Walter Herrmann. He’s a really good shooter, rebounder and defender, given a chance. He works very hard. Charlotte will regret this trade in the long run because of Herrmann.
Langlois: Nice to hear for Pistons fans, Fred. The driving force behind the trade from a Pistons perspective was the salary-cap implications, but Joe Dumars went out of his way to say he liked both players the Bobcats sent away so much that he’d asked about their availability in previous deals. I’m curious why Sam Vincent didn’t seem to have much use for Herrmann, as well as he played late last season when given a chance to play. And I thought Brezec looked like a nice young big man early in his Charlotte career, too. There are dozens of players on NBA benches – and dozens more toiling outside the NBA – whose careers might be far different given the right surroundings. The Pistons hope that’s the case with Herrmann and Brezec.
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Bryan (Detroit): I might have agreed with those petitioning for Amir Johnson to get more playing time this season – until I saw him play. His lack of experience and low basketball IQ seem evident. My suspicion is that after his three-year contract is up, Joe Dumars will decide not to give him a big contract. My question: Is Amir Johnson a money pit?
Langlois: The Pistons sure don’t believe so, Bryan. That said, signing any young player to a multiyear contract is strictly a matter of projecting where you think he’ll be when the contract expires. There are no guarantees, but the Pistons feel very good that Amir’s natural talent coupled with his work ethic and passion for basketball give him the best possible chance to realize his potential. Yeah, signs of his inexperience are still apparent, but I have not seen a low basketball IQ.
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Clifford: Utah has been tough on the Pistons lately. What do we need to do to beat them since they could possibly come out of the West and take on the Pistons in the NBA Finals?
Langlois: The Jazz had lost 7 of 8 heading into Wednesday night’s game at Charlotte, Clifford, and were clinging to the final playoff spot in the West. The Pistons took them to the final possession in their loss at Utah last season. They lost at home last January in Chauncey Billups’ first game back after sitting out eight games with a leg injury, and when they lost to them last month at The Palace they were without Rasheed Wallace. The Jazz are a tough matchup, no question, but the Pistons would be happy to take their chances in the NBA Finals. Utah has a lot of minefields to tiptoe through before that happens.
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Ryan (Toledo): Toledo is building a brand new arena that’s supposed to be among the best and they plan to host indoor football, hockey and basketball. What do you think the chances are that the Fort Wayne Mad Ants come to Toledo. I could be your on-site scout and reporter.
Langlois: If that happens, Ryan, consider yourself the front-runner for the job. If that arena is as nice as you say, then I’d have to think Toledo would be near the front of the line to get a D-League team – it wouldn’t necessarily have to come at Fort Wayne’s expense.
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Ryan (Grand Rapids): Now that we have more trade flexibility with contracts, is there any chance the Pistons revisit the J.R. Smith trade?
Langlois: From everything I’ve been able to round up, Ryan, there was never any first “visit” of the J.R. Smith trade. The kid oozes talent, but he’s been such a problem child that it’s hard to see the Pistons – with Joe Dumars’ track record of steering clear of just such players – risking their locker room when things are going smoothly. Then again, it’s also true that the Pistons have strong enough leadership in place that they could probably manage one quirky character. Bottom line: I wouldn’t say impossible, but I would say highly improbable.
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Fran (Southfield): With two new players, a commitment to playing the younger guys and Rodney Stuckey coming back, who will be on the inactive list?
Langlois: Cheikh Samb and two from among the group of Flip Murray, Lindsey Hunter and Walter Herrmann would be my guess.
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Andrea (Battle Creek): I was sad to see Nazr traded. He was a kind man and a real people person. I don’t really know the new Pistons. I saw Herrmann play for his national team and remember seeing Brezec in a commercial for the NBA. I saw Brezec played a little in his first game. Will Herrmann get to play?
Langlois: Brezec will probably be given the opportunities Mohammed was getting. What he does with them will determine how much more or less he plays. Herrmann’s in a tough spot. He can play either forward spot, but there’s too much competition ahead of him at power forward. If Jarvis Hayes continues to struggle with his shooting, it’s possible Herrmann will get a crack at backup minutes behind Tayshaun Prince.
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Leslie (Brooklyn, N.Y.): Once Stuckey gets acclimated, is it possible he could join a second unit that features Hayes at shooting guard and Herrmann at small forward with Maxiell and Brezec?
Langlois: It all depends on matchups, I suppose. That unit wouldn’t work against teams that went with the current NBA trend toward quicker, more athletic lineups. On the other hand, you’d have a lineup that could stretch opposing defenses with the perimeter shooting of Hayes and Herrmann and Brezec’s ability to step outside. I think Flip Saunders would feel more comfortable with Afflalo alongside Stuckey and then either Hayes or Herrmann at small forward.
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Kevin (Lathrup Village): I know Primoz and Walter won’t get much playing time right away, but please tell me they’ll at least get shots to prove themselves. Primoz used to light up the box score in 2004-05 and Herrmann couldn’t miss at the end of last year. Also, what do you think are the chances of their wishes to retire as Pistons happening?
Langlois: They’ll have to make an impression in practices first and then take advantage of limited opportunities in games, but they have one thing going for them, Kevin: Joe Dumars did not just trade for them because he was looking to dump a contract. He and his staff like both players. That counts for something. As for Brezec’s nice numbers in his first few years with Charlotte, he’s a capable player but let’s also remember that he was playing with a very thin roster back then. Herrmann did play very well down the stretch last season, which makes it surprising he didn’t really get much of a chance with new coach Sam Vincent.
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Gil (Charlotte, N.C.): If a player jumped from behind the NBA 3-point line and dunked, would it be worth three points or two?
Langlois: Well, I can’t find a definitive answer, but until someone tells me otherwise, it has to be worth three points. If a shooter goes up for a jump shot with both feet behind the 3-point line, releases the shot while he’s still in the air and comes down with a foot on or inside the line, it’s a 3-pointer. Same thing here. It’s where your feet are when you leave the ground, not where you land. If you know of anyone who can demonstrate this move, Gil, there are 30 NBA general managers who’ll pay you a handsome finder’s fee.
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Travis (Chicago): Antonio McDyess is playing inspired basketball. What I watch the games, I keep confusing him with Jason Maxiell because they’re both playing with such high energy. Does it make you wonder if we would have benefited from starting him at the beginning of last year instead of Nazr Mohammed? Also, what does it mean when a player is waived as the Pistons did with Dupree?
Langlois: I’ll be a lot of people have had similar moments of doubt whether a block or a swooping rebound was McDyess or Maxiell, Travis. Good call. The Pistons have used McDyess cautiously since acquiring him as a free agent following the 2004 season because he was coming off three injury-ravaged seasons. But the way he’s responded to a heavier workload this year naturally makes you wonder how much more they could have gotten out of him last year. Then again, if you believe everything happens for a reason, maybe the reason they can push McDyess a little harder this year is because the lighter workload of the past three seasons has allowed him to gradually recuperate from injuries to both knees. To waive a player in the NBA means he’s free to sign with any other team – but, yes, he collects every penny on his contract. Some rookies and young players are signed to contracts that guarantee them a certain amount but not the full value of the deal – that’s the deal the Pistons and Sammy Mejia had – and others become fully guaranteed past a certain date, which is why in the last week the Clippers waived Ruben Patterson and the Celtics waived Brandon Wallace.
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Christal: Like Manu comes off the bench for San Antonio, I think Rip Hamilton should for the Pistons and they can start Flip Murray. He’ll grow and so will the team.
Langlois: Flip Saunders was asked that question about a month ago and said it was not a consideration. If they were to ever consider bringing Hamilton off the bench, I don’t think it would be Murray they’d make a starter.
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Dena-Rose (New York): I noticed in a recent Mailbag that a reader indicated that a fan at a recent game perceived the Pistons organization, and Joe Dumars in particular, as being racist because of the makeup of the roster. Having been born to parents of Afro-Caribbean and Chinese heritage and Irish and German heritage, I am continuously amazed and perturbed that race continues to be a divisive factor in American society in the 21st century. With the current state of the world – and of this country, in particular – the dearth of Caucasian or Latino players on the Pistons’ roster warrants this much attention?
Langlois: I hear you, Dena-Rose. I chose to post and answer the question because every now and then a low rumble bubbles to the surface. I get the sense that it’s a non-issue for 99 percent of Pistons fans, and I’ll mark that as progress – it would have gotten far more attention a generation ago. My hunch is that by the next generation, if it’s noticed at all it will be as a curiosity or the subject of scholarly debate as to its causes, not of derision and innuendo. Ironically enough, the day after that Mailbag was posted, the Pistons made a trade that added Primoz Brezec and Walter Herrmann.
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Duane (Falls Church, Va.): Is there a clear definition of what constitutes a technical foul and is it consistently applied? If there is none, or if it isn’t consistently applied, then they deserve another name – arbitrary fouls or discretionary fouls or capricious fouls.
Langlois: Some technical fouls are clearly deserved and would be called by 99 percent of officials 99 percent of the time. Most, though, are simply a matter of interpretation and level of tolerance on the part of an individual referee – who could be influenced by any number of factors, including where the game is being played, his particular mood at the time, and, mostly, his history with the player in question. It’s the nature of the beast. There are countless subjective decisions to be processed on each possession of an NBA game. That’s why officials hold more influence over a basketball game than their football or baseball peers do – though the home-plate umpire, obviously, has a huge impact depending on his strike zone. Hockey is another matter. Because of the huge influence of the power play, hockey referees are even more integral to a game’s outcome than basketball officials. Yet because so many more calls are made in basketball than hockey – and because the majority of those calls are open to interpretation – the environment is created for dispute between player and official that doesn’t exist to nearly that degree in other sports. And so – long way around – the necessity for the technical foul is there to draw the line on debate.