It may have cost him some money, but Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade proved he is slightly better than San Antonio's Manu Ginobili at fooling the officials, for at least one night. Late in the second quarter of Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night, Wade got the ball near the scorer's table and Ginobili took a swipe, trying to knock it out of his hands. Ginobili appeared to hit him on the hand yet Wade jerked back as if he had been struck in the face. A referee nearby immediately called a foul on Ginobili, his third of the game.
"And he flopped," ESPN commentator and anti-flopping advocate Jeff Van Gundy said during the broadcast. "And I go back to what [former NBA official] Steve Javie says. Never trust the player."
Ginobili, who has been caught flopping during his career, tried to pull off a similar move in the final minutes of the game. After getting the ball at the top of the key, the 36-year-old acted as if Miami's Ray Allen knocked him in the head. In that case, no call was made. Ginobili eventually turned the ball over.
On Monday, the NBA hit Wade with a $5,000 fine. With the Heat winning Game 2 (and Ginobli playing four minutes less than Game 1, perhaps due to that foul trouble), Wade wasn't likely too upset about the fine.