Why I Hate Flopping

And not just in sports

When I first started playing basketball, there was no flopping. It didn’t exist. I never saw it. I never even heard it mentioned.

Flops back then were on Broadway. Not in Madison Square Garden.

But nowadays, the flop is as common on the hardwood as three-point shots and goofy mascots. Just lay a finger on a NBA star, and he drops like a bowling pin.

Here’s what it looks like:

I hear people claim that flopping existed in the NBA back in the 1960s—but they can’t actually produce film footage to prove it. Sure, players tried to get fouls called in their favor, and would lie and cheat if necessary. But they would never engage in the theatrical pratfalls of today.

A flopper would have been mocked endlessly, even by teammates. Anyone who continued making these slapstick falls would get laughed out of the league.

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That’s because the ethos in sports was the exact opposite of flopping. Athletes were expected to act as if they were immune to pain. No matter how hard you got hit, you shook it off as if you’d been caressed with a feather duster.

You did this to intimidate your opponent.

You sent a message that you were tougher than them. Nothing they did could stop you.

The ideal was football star Jim Brown. “You get up the same each time so that the enemy don’t know when you’re hurt,” he later explained. “It gives you an advantage. It’s that simple.”

But it wasn’t just Jim Brown. I saw the same macho attitude in Earl Campbell, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders, and other NFL stars. The same was true in the NBA back then. Players like Wilt and Kareem always kept a poker face, never revealing any pain or hint of weakness.

Did Michael Jordan ever flop? Check out this video.