The NBA or WWE, what is going on? News Chicago Bulls

OK, so who's running the NBA these days, Vince Mc?Mahon? Cheap shots, head slaps, tackles, flying elbows, forearm shivers, takedowns ? is this the NBA or the WWE? If you answered the former, then you are correct. All we're missing is the folding chairs.

Flagrant fouls and rough play are the Story of the Playoffs so far. Now the NBA has a question to answer in the off-season ? what is a flagrant foul? There are rules that supposedly define a flagrant foul, but they're fairly useless, it turns out. Like pornography, nobody can really define a flagrant foul ? they just know it when they see it. And then it depends on who sees it. At this point, things get pretty muddled. Do they call a flagrant foul against a superstar? At the end of a crucial playoff game? Is there a difference between a flagrant foul and what coaches call "a good hard playoff foul." What is "unnecessary" contact? There is so much confusion that Stu Jackson, NBA vice president in charge of Basketball operations, said this week that the NBA needs to educate players further in the nuances of the flagrant foul. Let's hope they include referees in the discussion, because they're at least as confused as the rest of us. Flagrant fouls are defined by the NBA as, "1) Unnecessary contact committed by a player against an opponent. 2) Unnecessary and excessive contact committed by a player against an opponent. It is an unsportsmanlike act and the offender is ejected immediately. The offender will be subject to a fine not exceeding $35,000 and/or suspension." Keep this in mind as we roll the highlight tape of the 2009 playoffs to date, and see if you don't detect a slight pattern of confusion: Seeing Luis Scola running up court to set a screen, the Lakers' Derek Fisher lowered his shoulder and crashed into his chest, finishing the job with a forearm shiver that landed the Houston forward on his back. The refs called that a Flagrant Foul Penalty Two, and Fisher was ejected and suspended for one game. At least they got that one right. Kobe Bryant was assessed a Flagrant Foul Penalty One for elbowing Ron Artest in the throat. Actually, the refs missed it; they didn't even call a foul. It was only after the game ? and after a loud protest from Artest ? that the NBA caught up with Bryant. Rajon Rondo, the Celtics' point guard, slapped Chicago's Brad Miller in the head as the latter was attempting a sure-thing layup in the final seconds of Game 5 and Miller missed the shot. Rondo made no pretense of trying to block the shot ? he was clearly going for Miller's head ? but the refs didn't call a flagrant foul. Miller, who was woozy and required medical attention on his bloody mouth, missed the free throws and his team lost. Rondo's slap was the Play of the Game. "It won the game for us," said Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who discussed how he coaches his players to allow no layups and to deliver hard "playoff fouls" to prevent them. If a flagrant foul had been called, the Bulls could have chosen any of Miller's clearheaded teammates to shoot the free throws. Bottom line: Crime paid. The NBA , by the way, ruled that it was not a flagrant foul ? so the league deserves whatever it gets in the way of rough play from now on. Two days later, Rondo was at it again in Game 6, shoving Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich into the scorer's table and throwing an elbow that missed. This time Rondo was hit with a flagrant foul. In Game 3 of the Lakers-Rockets series, Artest was whistled for a Flagrant Foul Penalty Two for his hard foul of Pau Gasol, which brings an automatic ejection and suspension from the following game. Later, the league downgraded it to a regular foul and the suspension was voided. Get the feeling the officials haven't a clue? Orlando's Dwight Howard received a one-game suspension for an elbow he threw at the head of Philadelphia's Samuel Dalembert in Game 5. The NBA got this one right, too ? later. Howard received only a technical foul during the game and was not ejected. Rafer Alston was suspended for slapping Eddie House in the back of the head while the latter was celebrating a basket. They both received technicals during the game. The suspension was assessed a day later. With one second left and his team trailing by two points, Denver's Carmelo Anthony sank a three-point shot to give his team a 3-0 series lead over Dallas. The trouble is, well before Anthony attempted the shot, Dallas's Antoine Wright delivered an obvious bump to Anthony in an attempt to draw a foul call, but the refs swallowed their whistles. A day later, the NBA ruled that a foul should have been called, but the damage was done. By failing to make the call, the referees put players in a no-win situation: Either commit a flagrant foul and earn ejection/suspension to ensure they get a foul call when they need one; or, commit a softer foul that doesn't risk suspension/ejection but does risk a non-call and a game-winning shot. Stay tuned; more bumps and bruises are coming. The NBA ? Where trouble happens. e-mail: drob@desnews.com