JaVale McGee Benched After Throwing Alley-Oop to Himself (Video)

Wizards big man JaVale McGee was benched Monday for throwing himself an alley-oop in the third quarter of his team’s loss to the Rockets. I’m not sure why it’s so hard for McGee to understand that showboating on a 1-12 team is a bad idea, but he doesn’t seem to get it.

“Apparently, if you get a fastbreak & throw it off backboard in the 3rdQ & you’re 1-11, you’re not supposed to do stuff like that,” he said after the game.

Coach Flip Saunders complained “You know we have some players that look for highlights rather than substance.”

Given everything McGee did to get a triple-double last March, this video doesn’t surprise me. It’s not like throwing yourself an alley-oop is an egregious offense to the basketball gods, but when you’re just struggling to get wins, settling for the high-percentage dunk is probably the smarter move.

Chest bump Eye on Basketball