Matthew Dellavedova is gaining somewhat of a reputation. In the first round he got involved in some aggresive plays with the Celtics, in the second round he got into an altercation with Taj Gibson, and everytime it seems like it’s at a perfect time for the Cavaliers. Almost as if he does it on purpose. In game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals he may have done something similar, with Al Horford. The Hawks had control of game 3 but late in the second quarter, Al Horford was ejected for a elbow to the shoulder of Matthew Dellavedova, conveniently.
According to Tom Withers of the Associated Press:
Horford felt Dellavedova had dived at his legs.
“I did think he went at me but I should have handled it better,” Horford said. “Shouldn’t have gotten caught up in that and it’s something I’ll definitely learn from. The game before I got hit in the knees and it just kind of played over again.”
Horford was one of several Hawks irritated by Dellavedova, who had knocked Hawks guard Kyle Korver out for the postseason with a similar play in Game 2.
“You’re always upset when you lose one of your teammates,” Horford said. “He’s (Dellavedova) a player that plays hard but there’s got to be a line at some point. He’s got to learn. He’s only been in this league for a couple of years but he’s got to learn that at the end of the day, it’s a big brotherhood here. Guys look out for each other and I don’t think it was malicious but he’s got to learn.”
Dellavedova defended his actions, saying he was only trying to get the ball.
“I would obviously disagree with that, I was boxing him out,” Dellavedova said. “You can see from the baseline view that he’s pulling my arm.”
Here is the play in question:
So the NBA hasn’t commented on the play in question yet, but they will ‘clarify’ the call and the play within the next 24 hours. The Hawks are now down 3-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals. It was truly a valiant effort for them this year, winning 60 games and reaching franchise records, but LeBron James has been unstoppable in this series, and the Hawks have sustained too many injures. Is it too soon to call a Cavaliers vs. Warriors Finals?
