This will get you a 3 month suspension in Italy

[Orangutan]

This might get you a game in the WNBA. I saw a USA Today story saying Dearica Hamby had been suspended for 3 months by the Italian league. I found the incident in question on twitter. There's....not a lot of contact.



Apparently, this video cuts off right before the other player (Croatian Ivana Tikvic) suffered a head injury when her head hit the floor.

Throwing a punch is Very Bad and deserving of suspension but this seems...harsh. I dare say it even looks like a bit of a dive on Tikvic's part.

The injury was real enough that she reportedly was taken to a hospital, however.

 

[cbraarj]

I thought she didnt kiss the Dons ring!

 

[eebmg]

This might get you a game in the WNBA. I saw a USA Today story saying Dearica Hamby had been suspended for 3 months by the Italian league. I found the incident in question on twitter. There's....not a lot of contact.



Apparently, this video cuts off right before the Italian player suffered a head injury when her head hit the floor.

Throwing a punch is Very Bad and deserving of suspension but this seems...harsh. I dare say it even looks like a bit of a dive on the Italian player's part.

Unless I am going blind, that looks like a 2 handed push and not a punch and she definitely flopped.

 

[iri10]

Punches shouldn't be thrown in basketball, and I'd consider it OK for as much as three games of suspension, given that the punch didn't connect. Three months is a bit excessive...

As for the other player's injury, it actually looks like her fall might have been caused (at least in part) by the vigor of her own elbow to Hamby's chest before the punch.

 

[Plebe]

Her team's website has additional video footage that shows Hamby standing over Tikvic:
Resoconto conferenza stampa sui fatti di Torino

Hamby's tweet about what led to her throwing a punch:

 

[chrissaran]

The intent was for a lot more harm to be done.

 

[JordyG]

It looks to me that Hamby was suspended for the combination of intent and the (unintended) result of the head injury to Tikvic. The intended punch would have been far less injurious.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Clearly she doesn't know how to throw a punch. It was her left arm and right leg that put the finishing touches on the other player, already off balance and out of control, going down. The so called punch was at most a glancing forearm-with nothing behind it- across the other player's upper back.

 

[Plebe]

More highlights from this game (gives an idea of the kind of physical play that is allowed):

 

[bags27]

Looked like the (in)famous Notre Dame flop to me.

 

[Plebe]

Apparently, this video cuts off right before the other player (Croatian Ivana Tikvic) suffered a head injury when her head hit the floor.

Throwing a punch is Very Bad and deserving of suspension but this seems...harsh. I dare say it even looks like a bit of a dive on Tikvic's part.

The injury was real enough that she reportedly was taken to a hospital, however.

The Italian league authorities, I would imagine, were treating this like a Kermit Washington-type incident, thinking that Hamby had directly caused Tikvic's injury by throwing the punch, and not realizing that Hamby's punch didn't even land. Hamby's actions immediately after Tikvic falls, where she stood over her in a menacing pose, probably exacerbated their impression of the incident as well.

 

[SVCBeercats]

Dearica Hamby should have been thrown out of the league for the season. I have always believed any player who punches or tries to punch another player should be arrested. It is assault. Don't even try to give my the emotions of the game BS. I played in industrial leagues. No blood, no foul. If someone hurt one of our players on purpose, this meant seriously violent retaliation. Some one from the Italian should have clocked Hamby but good. Serious concussion clocking. It is the only way to stop the sucker punching cowards like Hamby.

 

[Vowelguy]

3 month suspension in Italy should be limited to anyone eating Chef Boyardee

 

[Orangutan]

Dearica Hamby should have been thrown out of the league for the season. I have always believed any player who punches or tries to punch another player should be arrested. It is assault. Don't even try to give my the emotions of the game BS. I played in industrial leagues. No blood, no foul. If someone hurt one of our players on purpose, this meant seriously violent retaliation. Some one from the Italian should have clocked Hamby but good. Serious concussion clocking. It is the only way to stop the sucker punching cowards like Hamby.

What about the elbow the other player threw before immediately before the punch? Is that assault? I guess one should always confine their acts of assault to things that are plausibly basketball plays.

 

[Orangutan]

The Italian league authorities, I would imagine, were treating this like a Kermit Washington-type incident, thinking that Hamby had directly caused Tikvic's injury by throwing the punch, and not realizing that Hamby's punch didn't even land. Hamby's actions immediately after Tikvic falls, where she stood over her in a menacing pose, probably exacerbated their impression of the incident as well.

It's a weird situation. She meant to hit her. That is evidenced by Hamby standing over her, which I interpret as a sort of "that's what you get for messing with me" gesture.

I don't think she meant to put her in the hospital. But Tikvic did end up in the hospital. But she didn't end up in the hospital because Hamby hit her. She ended up in the hospital because Hamby *tried* to hit her.

 

[eebmg]

Looked like the (in)famous Notre Dame flop to me.

7.7 8.2 7.9 8.3

 

[SVCBeercats]

What about the elbow the other player threw before immediately before the punch? Is that assault?

I'll let the court decide.

I always believed every team needed at least one enforcer a la Jungle Jim Loscutoff (Loscy). I learned this from "Red" when I was a kid. If an opponent has no respect for the rules and neither do the refs or umps, then the opponent needed to be "educated."

"Celtics legend Red Auerbach loved fearless enforcers, and no player filled that role better than Loscutoff during Boston’s early years of success."

'Auerbach once said that Loscutoff had two jobs: “He was there to rebound and to make sure that nothing happened to Bob Cousy.”'

'He played a big brother-like role for his teammates; if an opponent got too physical with them, Loscy would be there to return the favor. That tough style of play eventually earned him another nickname: “Jungle Jim.”'

 

[Plebe]

It's a weird situation. She meant to hit her. That is evidenced by Hamby standing over her, which I interpret as a sort of "that's what you get for messing with me" gesture.

I don't think she meant to put her in the hospital. But Tikvic did end up in the hospital. But she didn't end up in the hospital because Hamby hit her. She ended up in the hospital because Hamby *tried* to hit her.

It is a really weird situation. I'm not even sure that Hamby's attempted punch caused Tikvic to fall. I think her elbow shot into Hamby's chest had at least as much to do with why she lost her footing and fell.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

Good for the Italian league for suspending her for essentially the remainder of the season. The the punch didn't land, she threw her off balance, resulting in a serious head injury. It is absolutely wrong to attempt to injure someone, and from Hamby's tweet, that is exactly what she tried to do. Causing someone to be knocked out and transported to a hospital is inexcusable. No basketball league needs someone like that on its courts, and if she ends up being expelled permanently from the league, so be it.

This is not boxing, it's not Fight Club, it's not mortal combat. That young lady could suffer lasting brain damage. A 3- month suspension was the least of the possible punishments. Indeed, the WNBA should review that footage and determine if Hamby should be suspended or expelled from that league permanently.

 

[Plebe]

Dearica Hamby should have been thrown out of the league for the season. I have always believed any player who punches or tries to punch another player should be arrested. It is assault. Don't even try to give my the emotions of the game BS. I played in industrial leagues. No blood, no foul. If someone hurt one of our players on purpose, this meant seriously violent retaliation. Some one from the Italian should have clocked Hamby but good. Serious concussion clocking. It is the only way to stop the sucker punching cowards like Hamby.

Your stance is self-contradicting.

Hamby's position is that her opponent had been deliberately attempting to injure her, and she was merely retaliating ("defending herself"). By your own explanation, you feel that such violent retaliatory measures are in order.

 

[Shades]

The irony is Taurasi hit Hamby in the back of the head during a WNBA game. The abused becomes the abuser. Isn't that how it usually works?

 

[triaddukefan]

Dearica Hamby should have been thrown out of the league for the season. I have always believed any player who punches or tries to punch another player should be arrested. It is assault. Don't even try to give my the emotions of the game BS. I played in industrial leagues. No blood, no foul. If someone hurt one of our players on purpose, this meant seriously violent retaliation. Some one from the Italian should have clocked Hamby but good. Serious concussion clocking. It is the only way to stop the sucker punching cowards like Hamby.

 

[triaddukefan]

It is a really weird situation. I'm not even sure that Hamby's attempted punch caused Tikvic to fall. I think her elbow shot into Hamby's chest had at least as much to do with why she lost her footing and fell.

So basically the Italian gal ended up in the hospital because she's clumsy?

 

[Plebe]

So basically the Italian gal ended up in the hospital because she's clumsy?

Well, she certainly didn't end up there from a punch, because no punch was landed.

Did the whiff on the punch cause her to fall, or did she knock herself off balance when she shoved off with her elbow? It's certainly open to interpretation, but my reading of the video is that it was more the latter.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

7.7 8.2 7.9 8.3

Degree of difficulty?