It's on the NBA to punish Zaza Pachulia's dirty antics
Kevin Durant tried to defend Zaza Pachulia for his latest instance of foul play, but the excuses are comical at this point.
Pachulia wasn't being "clumsy" when he fell directly onto Russell Westbrook's legs on Saturday. That implies it was a coincidence, or that it was accidental. That's giving Pachulia the benefit of the doubt, which he has spat on time and time again. He knew what he was doing.
The pattern with Pachulia is clear. He's purposely reckless, and the league needs to step in before there's another casualty, as in the case of Kawhi Leonard.
Taking stock of his greatest hits tells the truth of what he's all about. You can find excuses like Nick Young's trailing foot in each incident, but the larger trend is undeniable.
Pachulia is a dirty player who makes dirty plays, so much so that there's a rule against dirty closeouts named after him. There's no other conclusion you could come to after seeing him sabotage ankles, hammer knees, twist arms, trip people, and fall backward into vulnerable legs.
There was a natural balance that once kept players like him in line.
In the old days, a dirty player would have to answer to an enforcer. If you made a dirty play, not only would you be fined, but you would also get a taste of your own medicine from someone like Charles Oakley. That helped curtail this type of reckless behavior.
Nowadays, enforcers are few and far between. The NBA has worked tirelessly over the last two decades to eradicate violence from the game since the nightmare that was "The Malice at the Palace." The league established strict penalties against fighting to the point where it wasn't viable from a financial standpoint for enforcers to keep other players in line.
It was a necessary and overdue change that put the sport of basketball - and not the blood sport sideshow - center stage. The league rebuilt its popularity to rival that of the Michael Jordan era, and the game is more free-flowing than it has ever been. The "hold-me-back" era is a huge hit.
The downside to sanitizing the sport is that it removed the biggest obstacle for dirty players. Pachulia has taken a pound of flesh over the years, but nobody has come for revenge since it's too expensive.
When he knocked down Westbrook last season and stood over his aching corpse, nobody on OKC did anything. When he did an elbow drop on Westbrook's legs, nobody on OKC did anything.
That's the reigning MVP getting tossed around twice like a rag doll, but his options are limited to ripping Pachulia in the press, since risking suspension isn't an option with his team in the thick of playoff contention.
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
That's why it's on the league to act. If it's not going to let players police themselves, it's on it to protect players from Pachulia.
It needs to be more than the Zaza Pachulia rule that was implemented after he ended Leonard's season in the Western Conference ]finals. Prevention should be the main goal, and Pachulia needs to face punishment so severe that it stops him from taking out the next star.
Granted, that won't be easy. Rules exist to keep everything fair, and the players' union will protect Pachulia like any other client. The league won't take extraordinary measures on a whim - even if it's the right thing to do - since it would set a tricky precedent.
But this can't keep happening. The stars won't let it continue. Westbrook spoke out. Gregg Popovich spoke out. Kyrie Irving spoke out. Damian Lillard spoke out. Pachulia's antics are a problem that needs to be addressed.
Commissioner Adam Silver has gone above and beyond to protect his players' health in recent seasons. He shortened preseason and cut back-to-backs to the bare minimum in hopes that his stars - the ones who enable players like Pachulia to get a hefty paycheck - can perform on a nightly basis. And yet, there's an obvious problem right in front of him that continues to go unaddressed.
The NBA can't have it both ways. It can't prioritize player safety only when it's convenient. It's on the league to stop Pachulia.