Jaren Jackson Jr. was not at all slick during Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Memphis Grizzlies All-Star Jackson had an embarrassing flop in the third quarter of his team’s eventual 134-127 loss to the Lakers. Jackson was attempting to rotate defensively to contest a corner three-point shot by Lakers guard Gabe Vincent when he was lightly pushed by LeBron James. In response, Jackson theatrically fell to the deck, right in front of an official (referee crew chief Tyler Ford).
Ford was not fooled by Jackson’s pathetic sell job, and immediately blew the whistle to give Jackson a technical foul for flopping. Here is the video.
While Vincent missed the three-pointer, the Lakers still managed to get points on that possession thanks to the one-shot technical foul on Jackson. As a result, they took a 102-99 lead into the fourth quarter and were able to hang on for their 45th victory of the year.
It is rare to see players get on-the-spot technicals for flopping these days (though the league has regularly been assessing retroactive flopping Ts this season upon postgame review). The very first in-game technical for flopping was issued just under two years ago, and they have mostly been handed out sparingly ever since then.
As for Jackson, the former NBA Defensive Player of the Year, there was certainly some irony involved there. He flopped after taking (minimal) contact from (of all people) James, who is himself known for his rather extensive history of flopping.
