- 29,630
- 1,862
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2003
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Magic center Dwight Howard added fuel to his on-goingfeud with NBA officials, conceding Sunday it's only a matter of timebefore he receives his 16th technical foul of the season, earning himan automatic one-game suspension without pay.
"The refs are like cops, and I'm on the Most Wanted list. My picture isin every cop station around the league,'' Howard joked after practiceSunday. "For every tech (they give me), they get a gold star. Fivestars, and they get promoted.''
Howard leads the league with 15 technical fouls, getting one in each ofthe last two games. He received one Wednesday night against San Antoniowhen, after a personal foul against him, he rolled the ball downcourt-- bowling style. He received one Thursday in Miami when he slammed theball down in frustration.
"I don't know if it's personal, or they (officials) are just trying tomake a point, but I thought the last couple on him were pretty cheap,where guys are looking for him,'' Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. "Theone should have been just a delay of game. It's just guys (officials)wanting to give techs.''
After reaching 16 -- which could happen as early as Monday night inPhiladelphia -- Howard would get a second one-game suspension for everytwo additional technical fouls. The count resets for the playoffs,where it takes seven technicals before a player is suspended.
Based on his $15 million annual salary, a one-game suspension will costHoward $136,363. The individual technical fouls this season have costhim anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000, depending where he was on the count.
The Magic have 12 regular season games remaining and both he and VanGundy admit that avoiding a 16th technical sounds almost unrealistic.
Van Gundy, throughout the season, has talked about Howard beingofficiated differently than other NBA stars, believing he is penalizedunfairly because of his size and dominance around the basket.
Both he and Howard were in a joking mood about the technicals Sundayafter two days off. The Magic, with the second-best record in theEastern Conference, have 12 games remaining in the regular season.
"If he got 15 (technical fouls) in 70 games, the odds now aren't withus,'' Van Gundy said. "He could go (without another one), but the oddsare against us there. More than likely, it will happen, and then we'lldeal with it.''
Van Gundy certainly doesn't want the next technical to come Mondaybecause then Howard would miss Wednesday's game against the AtlantaHawks, who are the No. 3 spot in the East, just four games behind theMagic.
Howard's technical-foul problem is ironic in some regards because ofhis reputation as a nice guy away from the court, sometimes criticizedfor smiling too much on the court, and not having a killer instinct.Yet his constant debate over calls against him clearly have not madehim a favorite with officials.
"The technical fouls against him are weird,'' said Magic backup centerMarcin Gortat, who will get the start if Howard is suspended. "I'veseen Dwyane Wade and LeBron James complain way more than Dwight and notget any techs. The other night, D-Wade was crying so many times, andnothing happened. Dwight doesn't have to do much to get called forone.''
Veteran Vince Carter also came to Howard's defense Sunday, saying thefrustration he sees comes from the way Howard is officiated, whichisn't always fair in his eyes.
"They call me 'Little Rasheed Wallace,' '' Howard said.
http://nba.fanhouse.com/2...cid=txtlnkusspor00000002
"The refs are like cops, and I'm on the Most Wanted list. My picture isin every cop station around the league,'' Howard joked after practiceSunday. "For every tech (they give me), they get a gold star. Fivestars, and they get promoted.''
Howard leads the league with 15 technical fouls, getting one in each ofthe last two games. He received one Wednesday night against San Antoniowhen, after a personal foul against him, he rolled the ball downcourt-- bowling style. He received one Thursday in Miami when he slammed theball down in frustration.
"I don't know if it's personal, or they (officials) are just trying tomake a point, but I thought the last couple on him were pretty cheap,where guys are looking for him,'' Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. "Theone should have been just a delay of game. It's just guys (officials)wanting to give techs.''
After reaching 16 -- which could happen as early as Monday night inPhiladelphia -- Howard would get a second one-game suspension for everytwo additional technical fouls. The count resets for the playoffs,where it takes seven technicals before a player is suspended.
Based on his $15 million annual salary, a one-game suspension will costHoward $136,363. The individual technical fouls this season have costhim anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000, depending where he was on the count.
The Magic have 12 regular season games remaining and both he and VanGundy admit that avoiding a 16th technical sounds almost unrealistic.
Van Gundy, throughout the season, has talked about Howard beingofficiated differently than other NBA stars, believing he is penalizedunfairly because of his size and dominance around the basket.
Both he and Howard were in a joking mood about the technicals Sundayafter two days off. The Magic, with the second-best record in theEastern Conference, have 12 games remaining in the regular season.
"If he got 15 (technical fouls) in 70 games, the odds now aren't withus,'' Van Gundy said. "He could go (without another one), but the oddsare against us there. More than likely, it will happen, and then we'lldeal with it.''
Van Gundy certainly doesn't want the next technical to come Mondaybecause then Howard would miss Wednesday's game against the AtlantaHawks, who are the No. 3 spot in the East, just four games behind theMagic.
Howard's technical-foul problem is ironic in some regards because ofhis reputation as a nice guy away from the court, sometimes criticizedfor smiling too much on the court, and not having a killer instinct.Yet his constant debate over calls against him clearly have not madehim a favorite with officials.
"The technical fouls against him are weird,'' said Magic backup centerMarcin Gortat, who will get the start if Howard is suspended. "I'veseen Dwyane Wade and LeBron James complain way more than Dwight and notget any techs. The other night, D-Wade was crying so many times, andnothing happened. Dwight doesn't have to do much to get called forone.''
Veteran Vince Carter also came to Howard's defense Sunday, saying thefrustration he sees comes from the way Howard is officiated, whichisn't always fair in his eyes.
"They call me 'Little Rasheed Wallace,' '' Howard said.
http://nba.fanhouse.com/2...cid=txtlnkusspor00000002
