Will the NBA’s new flopping rule really change anything?

The NBA is testing a new rule to dissuade players from flopping every time down the court. Flopping has become so common over the past 20 years that it’s part of the association’s culture. However, the league has finally decided to make an attempt to cut down on guys flopping all over the court.

According to reports by ESPN, the association will roll this rule out during summer league games. But is a separate rule for floppers even necessary? Some say yes, absolutely. While others suggest, referees stop taking the bait and being duped by known floppers. Like fans, players, and coaches around the league, the NBA knows which players have reputations for flopping more regularly than the average person’s bowel movements.

There is potential for this flopping deterrent to be effective, but its success ultimately lies in the hands of NBA refs. If this is going to be another rule that officials enforce for the first two weeks of the regular season, then forget about it. It’s obviously doomed to fail. If the league truly wants to cut back on flopping, they’ve got to make sure refs see this through.

Remember the foul rule the NBA trotted out a couple of years ago that many claim was aimed at James Harden? That started off on the right foot as offensive players were targeted for making “non-basketball” moves to draw fouls, but eventually, it faded into the background, and things have largely gone back to business as usual. If it’s going to be the same deal with the Floppers rule, then it has no chance of succeeding.

If it makes it past the summer league, one of the most critical aspects of this flopping rule will be referees making sure it doesn’t only affect non-stars. Many of you don’t like hearing this, but LeBron James flops. It is not the primary part of his game, but he flops just like any other player. Refs will need to ensure superstar players are also called out on their tendency to flop, especially late in tight games. If you’re only going to enforce this on lower-tier and mid-level players, scrap it now.

We all know stars get calls, but if you’re truly interested in ridding the game of flopping, refs need to use a heavy hand on everybody. NBA stars don’t need any more pacifiers; they’re already good enough. And they’re serious about this. The penalty should probably be a bit harsher. An unsportsmanlike technical foul is a good start, but that’s not enough to genuinely stop these guys from flopping. Surely, there will be tweaks to the rule based on how things go in the summer league.