Golden State Warriors head coach Mark Jackson is an "old school" guy, so he's not going to just sit around and let records be broken on his team. At least that's what Jackson told Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle after the Warriors intentionally fouled the Houston Rockets three straight times in the final minute on Monday night to avoid having a three-point record set against them:
Warriors Mark Jackson defends move to prevent Rockets’ threes record
Warriors head coach Mark Jackson defended his decision to intentionally foul the Rockets three straight times in the final minute to stop them from breaking the NBA all-time record for three-pointers in a game.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
“We’re not going to lie down,” Jackson said. “I was an old-school basketball player. I’m an old-school coach. If you can’t appreciate that, that’s on you.
“If you’re going to try to get the record, we’re going to stop you. ... I would expect nothing less if I was on the other side.”
Houston hit their NBA record-tying 23rd three-pointer with just under four minutes to go in the contest, and they did miss on several opportunities in the following minutes. But after Rockets guard Patrick Beverley got a technical for taunting with about a minute to go, Jackson decided there was no way Houston was getting that magical No. 24.
Despite being down 30 points, Jackson instructed his players to intentionally foul so the Rockets could not attempt any more threes. What resulted was some chaos, including Draymond Green getting thrown out of the game for a flagrant 2. Houston's Marcus Morris was also ejected during the ruckus.
Jackson was “successful” in his quest to avoid the record, which naturally brought plenty of boos from the remaining fans in attendance. While Rockets coach Kevin McHale had no problem with the fouling, many fans will file Jackson’s antics under the “trolling” category. And it truly was some top notch trolling, especially considering his team lost 140-109.
Over at The Dream Shake, Patrick Harrell admitted to being a bit conflicted about the situation. Harrell said while Jackson’s tactics were rather bush league, the Rockets could be open to some criticism as well for firing up three-pointers while up 30 points. However, it was not like Houston was doing anything different than they had been all game, so it’s hard to knock them too much.
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