Cavaliers Guard Derrick Rose is right, he doesn’t get calls

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Derrick Rose has a history of getting hosed  by officials. Friday night was the latest example.

It was an all-too-common site at the BMO Harris Bradley Center in Milwaukee on Friday night; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Derrick Rose hobbled off the court after landing awkwardly on his left ankle.

Rose was playing well with 12 points on 3-4 shooting and a couple of steals. But he didn’t return after Greg Monroe’s arm clonked the side of his head while he was airborne, directing him awkwardly to the hardwood. When Rose hit the ground, his ankle turned leading to the sprain.

Coach Tyronn Lue seemed concerned with his point guard, speaking pessimistically about the injury in the post-game presser.

The three-man officiating crew took another look at the play, upholding the original call of a common foul, saying Monroe didn’t have intent.

Of course, Rose vehemently disagreed with the original ruling.

The NBA later admitted the call was wrong, agreeing with Rose that Monroe’s contact warranted a flagrant foul.

But the guard took his complaint a step further, pleading his case with reporters after the game, claiming he thinks he is “the only person in the league that’s not getting a flagrant for that call.”

Rose seems a bit dramatic here, which wouldn’t be the first time he spoke hyperbolically. Rose has a history of over exaggerating, sometimes spouting foot-in-mouth statements at media conferences.

But there is some truth to this claim, and the NBA did agree with Rose that the foul should have been called a flagrant.

By definition, a flagrant foul is “unnecessary contact committed by a player against an opponent” or “unnecessary and excessive contact committed by a player against an opponent. It is unsportsmanlike and the player is ejected immediately.”

And like in football, when contact is made with a players head, officials are more likely to lean on the side of a flagrant foul. Hence why the league probably sided with the Cavaliers point guard. Here is the play that led to Rose’s injury and outrage:

It’s close. Monroe does appear to be going for the ball, making contact with Rose’s head region. It seems to be accidental; Monroe mistakenly hit Rose in the head as the guard torqued his body sideways toward the rim.

And that point is at the crux of whether or not Rose is the victim of unfair calls more often than other athletes. Rose often acrobatically, and sometimes dangerously glides through the air, dipping under defenders and drawing aggressive, yet inadvertent contact.

But before we victim blame, let’s examine a few other examples of Rose lashing out at officials for unfair treatment.

Rose last erupted midway through his New York Knicks season following a two-point loss to the Phoenix Suns. Rose missed a crucial late layup, but thought he was fouled on the attempt. Here’s the clip, about three minutes in to the highlight reel is when the play takes place:

It does appear that Rose was slapped by Eric Bledsoe on the play, earning a couple free throws.

The New York Post pointed out that by late January of last season, Rose was one of only four players to average 10 hard drives to the rim while averaging 2.3 or less free throws per game. The article also points out that the Knicks regularly complained about the lack of foul calls against Rose during his short stint with the team.

The perceived injustice against Rose was also heavily chronicled during his time with the Bulls. Midway through his final season, Rose was on pace for a career low in free throw attempts. On a cold, January night, he was clubbed during the second half in a win against Boston. But no foul was called. Rose called out the officials for their contentment with the play.

The miscall was egregious enough to spark  debate among the usually unbiased Chicago media. For the most part, the crew came to Rose’s defense. Contradictorily, pundits and columnist were quicker to criticize than defend the guard during his time in Chicago.

Rose also lashed out in 2012, claiming he was “the only superstar in the league going through what I’m going through” referring to his aggressive play without the help of the official’s whistle. Carlos Boozer, attempting to rationalize the lack of fouls called against Rose, hypothesized the physicality of Rose’s play leads to officials hesitating to call fouls.

Bleacher Report reported multiple times in 2010 on the lack of fouls called against Rose. In this example, the writer (could be an unbashful Bulls fan) lists five or six examples of Rose not getting the whistle. All of them appear to be pretty clear fouls.

Bottom line, it appears Rose has been receiving unfair treatment from officials for most of his career. Maybe it’s is style of play. Maybe it’s his calm demeanor. If you noticed, some of the listed reports opened with the caveat that Rose “rarely complains.”

But sometimes that’s life. ‘Them’s the breaks,’ as they say. And some guys will always be at the mercy of bad calls. And Rose never developed a three pointer, meaning he must drive to the hoop more often than is backcourt colleagues. Case in point, he shot more inside five feet than almost any guard in the league last year.

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But the bottom line is officials are paid to get calls right. Rose is paid to play however best suits him. Hopefully, the pattern of poor officiating involving Rose changes. But I doubt it.