OAKLAND — UPDATE: The NBA got this right: Kevin Love will not face a suspension or anything else from his Game 1 leaving of the bench. This has been reported by multiple sources and confirmed by NBC Sports. Love will be available for Game 2.
The decision on Tristan Thompson is still up in the air.
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This should not happen — Kevin Love should be there to play in Game 2 Sunday. He should not even be fined, let alone suspended, for this.
However, the NBA has a history of suspensions for plays just like this.
During the Tristan Thompson/Draymond Green scuffle at the end of overtime (after what was a ridiculous ejection by Tony Brothers), Kevin Love took a couple of steps off the bench and onto the court.
Kevin Love (top right) on court during late scuffle. By rule a Game 2 suspension? pic.twitter.com/fcB8jeHQzs
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) June 1, 2018
Love later said he was coming out to argue the ejection of Thompson, not due to the scuffle that followed later after Green came in and did some taunting. This video backs that up.
Kevin Love told me he left the bench in OT to argue the call on Tristan, walking onto the court to get in the officials' eyeline, not in reaction to any scuffle & before it even broke out. Video (via @bballbreakdown) seems to back this up; not sure if it will matter to the league pic.twitter.com/JeHmd6Fl2p
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) June 1, 2018
Either way, this is not suspension worthy. Not close. Love did not enter and escalate the situation. Adam Silver’s NBA tends to see that better than the “letter of the law” David Stern version — think Amar’e Stoudemire in 2007 with the Suns and Spurs. Then again, predicting the NBA’s fine/suspension patterns is like predicting a roulette wheel. And I suck at roulette.
Along the same lines, Thompson should not be suspended either. Fine him for shoving the ball at Green or not leaving the court in a timely manner, but it’s not suspension level either.
