# Nicholas Batum disgraces himself, his team, his country, et al **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 10, 2012, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037 "2012-08-10T02:08:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/21 "2012-08-10T07:25:50Z")
HA! I thought the Spanish dude’s dick was flopping around so much the Frenchy said, " Douche!!" and punched the floppy scrotum. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/22 "2012-08-10T12:12:17Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > And the answer is to sucker punch home in the nuts? Bullshit. Batum’s move was a little bitch move. In Spain, this is a common and accepted form of salutation known as an _apretón de cojones_. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/23 "2012-08-10T14:26:31Z")
I don’t understand why he wasn’t kicked out. ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/24 "2012-08-10T14:47:52Z")
I can certainly understand his frustration at flopping. I’m not really a basketball fan, and flopping is part of that. I feel like it detracts from the game and, as was said upthread, it makes the ref more a part of the game trying to determine if it’s legitimate or not; it’s very unsportsmanlike. However, the answer to that is NOT to sucker punch a guy in the balls. He managed to combine basically the two worst things a guy can do to another guy in a competitive environment into a single act, and did it as a representative of his country, sport, and team on about the biggest stage possible. It’s one of the most shameful acts I’ve ever seen in sports. If he really felt he had to “give him something to flop about”, while it’s still unsportsmanlike, the worst think he should have done was maybe push him a little harder than he really needed to on an intentional foul. Or, I dunno, he could have done what most other people do in that situation and just talked some smack or called him out after the game or, best of all, just let it go. I expect this will follow him the rest of his career. ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/25 "2012-08-10T14:53:45Z")
> [@the\_diego](#): > > I’ll defend Batum just this once. It’s natural for a player to be irked by his opponent if that opponent is not only un-sportsmanlike but cowardly as well. Men find cowardice hard to forgive during a contest, possibly because it also makes them look bad. Except for the fact that JC Navarro wasn’t “flopping around” at any point in the match, you might have a point. What really happened is that this was like the sixth consecutive time Spain has beaten France in a row – and with said frustration building as the outcome was clear coming into the last minute, first Ronny Turiaf tackled Rudy Fernandez by the scorer’s table, resulting in a flagrant that also put Rudy out of the game and _then_ Batum decided a punch in Navarro’s nuts would be a great way to end the game. Smart move, really, I would have liked him to try and do the same thing to say, Felipe Reyes and/or Marc Gasol… ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/26 "2012-08-10T15:09:57Z")
> [@RedFury](#): > > Except for the fact that JC Navarro wasn’t “flopping around” at any point in the match, you might have a point. What really happened is that this was like the sixth consecutive time Spain has beaten France in a row – and with said frustration building as the outcome was clear coming into the last minute, first Ronny Turiaf tackled Rudy Fernandez by the scorer’s table, resulting in a flagrant that also put Rudy out of the game and _then_ Batum decided a punch in Navarro’s nuts would be a great way to end the game. Smart move, really, I would have liked him to try and do the same thing to say, Felipe Reyes and/or Marc Gasol… It would have been strange if Batum had punched Rudy Fernandez, a former Blazer teammate, who was supposedly one if his best friends on the team. It would have been crazy awkward if he had punched Victor Claver, a Blazer rookie this upcoming season. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/27 "2012-08-10T15:13:49Z")
Nut-punching Spaniards should be an Olympic event in and of itself. ---
**Author:** ![gamerunknown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6bbea6/32.png) [@gamerunknown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gamerunknown)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/28 "2012-08-10T15:33:36Z")
Nicolas Batum? I bam coal nuts I scam a nut lob I am ca bon slut Must I coin a lab? ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/29 "2012-08-10T15:46:52Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > Nut-punching Spaniards should be an Olympic event in and of itself. Only after [American face stomping](http://www.nbcolympics.com/wnbc/video/soccer/highlight-melissa-tancredi-stomps-carli-lloyds-face.html) is made official. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/30 "2012-08-10T16:06:29Z")
Flopping has been around a long time. It used to be a sign that a player was due to retire, as his defensive skills were disappearing. I remember being disgusted by Kevin McHale when he started doing that during his final years with the Celtics. Now it’s a routine move and shows just how lame basketball can be. Smart refs usually just call it ‘incidental contact’ and let the game continue without a foul being called. IMO, coaches should bench a player for doing it. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/31 "2012-08-10T16:07:56Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Flopping has been around a long time. It used to be a sign that a player was due to retire, as his defensive skills were disappearing. I remember being disgusted by Kevin McHale when he started doing that during his final years with the Celtics. Now it’s a routine move and shows just how lame basketball can be. Smart refs usually just call it ‘incidental contact’ and let the game continue without a foul being called. IMO, coaches should bench a player for doing it. I believe flopping is also a major component of European soccer matches ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/32 "2012-08-10T16:18:05Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I believe flopping is also a major component of European soccer matches It makes me laugh. Here’s a person rolling on the ground in agony, causing a game stoppage while four people attend to what must surely be a life-threatening injury. Ten seconds later, the guy (or gal) is running full tilt down the field. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/33 "2012-08-10T17:03:31Z")
Jesus Christ. Overreacting much? Yeah, he should have been kicked out. It’s a basketball game. It happens all the time, usually just with slightly more subtlety. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/34 "2012-08-10T17:10:13Z")
John Stockton was well known for grabbing players by the package, and no, I am not making that up. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/35 "2012-08-10T17:12:21Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Jesus Christ. Overreacting much? Yeah, he should have been kicked out. It’s a basketball game. It happens all the time, usually just with slightly more subtlety. Appropriate username. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/36 "2012-08-10T17:13:27Z")
Could be worse. There was an Aussie footballer a few years ago who got banned for his habit of, um, inserting his thumb into very private orifices of opposing players. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/37 "2012-08-10T17:24:02Z")
I’ve been noticing a little bit of flopping in the NFL, too. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/38 "2012-08-10T18:31:46Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > Only half a joke. Theatrics intended to draw fouls are shit play and detract from sport. They should be penalized as heavily as the imaginary fouls they’re pretending to be caused by. Yup. > [@Procrustus](#): > > I believe flopping is also a major component of European soccer matches Just a little - a guy gets brushed on the leg, and drops to the ground clutching his head and writhing in agony. > [@mlees](#): > > I’ve been noticing a little bit of flopping in the NFL, too. Those pants are awfully tight - are you sure there’s any flopping? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/39 "2012-08-10T18:35:43Z")
> [@gamerunknown](#): > > Nicolas Batum? > > I bam coal nuts > > I scam a nut lob > > I am ca bon slut > > Must I coin a lab? Basic man lout. Don’t think it could get any better than that! ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037/40 "2012-08-10T18:54:37Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > … and the Portland Trailblazers, who pay you a lot of money to not only play ball, but to conduct yourself like something other than a common thug. The Blazers have had a ‘thug’ reputation for several years now. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicholas-batum-disgraces-himself-his-team-his-country-et-al/631037.md?page=3)