Monroe: Dampier: No Intent To Hurt Parker

[duncan228]

Dampier: No intent to hurt Parker (http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/courtside/2009/04/dampier-no-inte.html#more)
By Mike Monroe

In Dallas, Mavericks center Erick Dampier on Wednesday said he regrets saying he would "put (Tony Parker) on his back" the first time he drives to the basket in Thursday's Game 3 of a first-round playoff series. Dampier said he has no intent to hurt anyone.

"It's just the game of basketball," Dampier said. "It wasn't said intentionally to go out and hurt anyone. Fouls happen in the game of basketball. We want to shut down the game and not give him a lot of easy layups.

"I've been here for the last five years, and had two flagrant fouls. I'm not trying to go out there and intentionally hurt anyone."

Parker scored 38 points in the Spurs' 105-84 victory in Monday's Game 2, after which Dampier made his "put him on his back" comment that got the attention of league officials.

Dampier said he was contacted by league officials about his comments.

Dampier's bigger concern for Game 3 is the added scrutiny his comments likely will get him.

"It will probably be magnified 100,000 times," he said.

[LoneStarState'sPride]

Dampier: No intent to hurt Parker (http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/courtside/2009/04/dampier-no-inte.html#more)
By Mike Monroe

In Dallas, Mavericks center Erick Dampier on Wednesday said he regrets saying he would "put (Tony Parker) on his back" the first time he drives to the basket in Thursday's Game 3 of a first-round playoff series. Dampier said he has no intent to hurt anyone.

"It's just the game of basketball," Dampier said. "It wasn't said intentionally to go out and hurt anyone. Fouls happen in the game of basketball. We want to shut down the game and not give him a lot of easy layups.

"I've been here for the last five years, and had two flagrant fouls. I'm not trying to go out there and intentionally hurt anyone."

Parker scored 38 points in the Spurs' 105-84 victory in Monday's Game 2, after which Dampier made his "put him on his back" comment that got the attention of league officials.

Dampier said he was contacted by league officials about his comments.

Dampier's bigger concern for Game 3 is the added scrutiny his comments likely will get him.

"It will probably be magnified 100,000 times," he said .

:cry

Shoulda thought about that before you opened your pie hole, idiot.

[anonoftheinternets]

:lmao:rollin lol tough guy erika ...

[BUMP]

here's a tip Dumpier

you should probably wait a day or two and think before you say something like this that could get you in trouble, cause obviously emotions run high after games and you will probably say things you will regret

[LoneStarState'sPride]

Hear that squeaking noise? That's the sound of erika backpedaling as fast as he can on his pink tricycle.

[timaios]

That guy is a joke. :pimpslap

[lefty]

Well, IF Joey Crawford officiates game 3, you can forget about the scrutiny calls

[Slomo]

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/Photoshop_madness/erick_dampier_genius.jpg

[Morg1411]

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/Photoshop_madness/erick_dampier_genius.jpg

:lmao

[Bukefal]

ooh ericka, poor little soul :lmao

[The Truth #6]

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/Photoshop_madness/erick_dampier_genius.jpg

Well, that probably wasn't politically correct.

[scanry]

There's a reason why they haven't won championships over the years. Besides Dirk, i can't think of one player on that team that has a good BB IQ.

Devin Harris was just starting to warm up and those fools traded him.

[jack sommerset]

Smart move. Now he can lay Parker out and the refs won't be the wiser.:toast

[benefactor]

lol backpeddaling....

[Morg1411]

The NBA: Where Stupid Happens

[xtremesteven33]

Kurt Thomas probably sent him a death threat.....CrAzY eYEs

[DPG21920]

lol clarifications

[Mister Sinister]

Snrk.

[dirk4mvp]

There's a reason why they haven't won championships over the years. Besides Dirk, i can't think of one player on that team that has a good BB IQ.

Devin Harris was just starting to warm up and those fools traded him.

So Devin would be an all star in Dallas as a 4th option compared to being the 1st in New Jersey?

[dougp]

So Devin would be an all star in Dallas as a 4th option compared to being the 1st in New Jersey?

He was emerging at the time of DWill and CP3 - he would be the #2 option on that team if he was there today, and I believe the Mavs would be in a much better position. But hey, I also think getting rid of AJ was stupid ...

[Spurs Brazil]

Dampier is a joke

[ElNono]

Well, this sucks. I was looking forward to the flagrant 2 and the suspension for Game 4...

[manufor3]

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/Photoshop_madness/erick_dampier_genius.jpg

:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao

[hater]

holy shit what an embarrassment this guy is

[duncan228]

Dampier vows to follow rules vs. Spurs, Parker (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/basketball/nba/wires/04/22/2030.ap.bkn.spurs.mavericks.1039/)

After chatting with league officials, Mavericks center Erick Dampier is toning down his plans to thwart San Antonio's Tony Parker.

The big guy is still going to get physical with the speedy point guard in Game 3, but he's no long guaranteeing that "my first foul Thursday night is going to put him on his back.''

"I probably shouldn't have said it like that,'' Dampier said Wednesday. "Maybe the way it came out, it sounded bad. ... I'm just going to go out there and play the way I've been playing.''

Dampier vowed to pop Parker on Monday night, after he turned Game 2 of this first-round series into a personal layup drill. Parker scored 38 points in 33 minutes, leading San Antonio to a 105-84 victory that tied the series at one game apiece.

The quote appeared in Tuesday's editions of The Dallas Morning News. Once it reached the league office, a "review'' began, which essentially meant Dampier having to explain himself. He did so again Wednesday with reporters.

"It's just the game of basketball,'' he said. "It wasn't said intentionally to go out and hurt anyone. I mean, fouls happen in the game of basketball. It's just that we want to shut down the paint and not give up any easy layups.''

No punishment was announced by the league. However, there will be repercussions in the form of more scrutiny from the refs.

"Probably magnified 100,000 times,'' Dampier said, laughing. "I'm just waiting to see how it's going to happen. But, like I said, I'm not going to go out there and do anything stupid. I just want to go out there and play the best I can.''

Mavericks players and coaches stood up for Dampier, essentially calling his threat a heat of the moment, slip of the tongue. They also agreed with his message.

"We can't just give up layup after layup, and Parker is one of the best at scoring in the paint,'' Dallas point guard Jason Kidd said. "We just have to be a little more physical - not in the sense of hurting anybody, but protecting the paint. I think that's what Damp was trying to say.''

Dampier and coach Rick Carlisle both noted that the burly center has only two flagrant fouls over five seasons in Dallas, which hardly brands him as a dirty player.

"They've got one - we don't,'' Mavs star Dirk Nowitzki said, clearly referring to Bruce Bowen, the Spurs' defensive ace who has long been a thorn to Dallas players.

Parker pretty much brushed off Dampier's threat.

"I can't focus on that,'' he said. "It's San Antonio and Dallas. We know they're going to come back strong. They're going to play very physical. They have a lot of character in that team, and just like we reacted in Game 2, they're going to react as well. ... I'll be ready.''

Parker scored 24 points in the opener, but made only two field goals in the second half. He scored as many points in the first quarter of Game 2 as the Mavericks did, then in the second quarter absorbed a flagrant foul from Jason Terry. The league said Terry would not be penalized any further.

"For me, the main thing is to make sure that we do stuff that made us win Game 2,'' Parker said. "That's my main focus, for me to be aggressive and make sure I help my team win.''

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich dismissed the whole Dampier-Parker drama.

"I don't pay attention, honestly, to anybody's comments. Not even my family's comments or my friends'. All that matters is what the teams do on the court,'' Popovich said. "Comments are just that, they're absolutely meaningless. So it doesn't affect anything.''

But what if the 6-foot-11, 265-pound Dampier gets rough with the 6-2, 180-pound Parker?

"He's a tough kid,'' Popovich said.

While this series lacks the gravitas of the Spurs-Mavs second-round feud in 2006, it's off to a juicy start.

San Antonio made 11 3-pointers and held Nowitzki and Terry well below their averages in Game 1, but Dallas won thanks to great play from other members of the supporting cast. Parker's dominance was the story line in Game 2, and now Dampier's line is helping build buzz for Game 3.

"It kind of fires me up,'' said Spurs reserve Drew Gooden, a newcomer to this Interstate 35 rivalry. "If somebody has that much courage to put themselves on the line, so be it. But I don't think anybody on our team has been the ones to talk. I think we can show better than we can tell. It will be interesting to see what happens. I think Tony is going to stay aggressive, so we'll see how Dallas handles that.''

The Mavericks have some good trends in their favor, like a 15-1 record at home since the All-Star break and going 6-1 in games following losses by at least 20 points.

Then there's the Nowitzki factor. He scored at least 20 points in the final 25 games of the regular season, but San Antonio has limited him to 19 and 14 over the first two games. He's 0-for-6 on 3-point tries.

Is he due to break out? Or have the Spurs figured out a way to stifle him?

"For a 7-footer who is not athletic, it's pretty hard to beat a double team, especially against smaller guys,'' Nowitzki said. "I just have to take what's there. I think I had some good shots in the second half. Obviously I forced a couple of 3s when we were down 20, but I think I'm going to have a few opportunities. If I have them, I have to make sure I make the best out of them.''

[crc21209]

Dampier is an idiot...now after realizing what he said he's just trying to avoid a fine and/or suspension. Too late now...

[crc21209]

You can't teach an old dog new tricks....so are we all supposed to believe that the Mavs are all of a sudden going to be a strong defensive force and stop TP? I think not...

[Spursmania]

Dampier: No intent to hurt Parker (http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/courtside/2009/04/dampier-no-inte.html#more)
By Mike Monroe

In Dallas, Mavericks center Erick Dampier on Wednesday said he regrets saying he would "put (Tony Parker) on his back" the first time he drives to the basket in Thursday's Game 3 of a first-round playoff series. Dampier said he has no intent to hurt anyone.

"It's just the game of basketball," Dampier said. "It wasn't said intentionally to go out and hurt anyone. Fouls happen in the game of basketball. We want to shut down the game and not give him a lot of easy layups.

"I've been here for the last five years, and had two flagrant fouls. I'm not trying to go out there and intentionally hurt anyone."

Parker scored 38 points in the Spurs' 105-84 victory in Monday's Game 2, after which Dampier made his "put him on his back" comment that got the attention of league officials.

Dampier said he was contacted by league officials about his comments.

Dampier's bigger concern for Game 3 is the added scrutiny his comments likely will get him.

"It will probably be magnified 100,000 times," he said.

Exactly genius! :rolleyes

[Spursmania]

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/Photoshop_madness/erick_dampier_genius.jpg

:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmaoThank you:lmao:lmao:lmao

[Spursmania]

Dampier is an idiot...now after realizing what he said he's just trying to avoid a fine and/or suspension. Too late now...

Hope he plays tentative now. Either way this affects his psyche because now he's being called out for wanting to be too aggressive. He should have shut his mouth, and just gone out and kicked some ass. So, even if he felt the fire in his belly, it's definitely subsided now with all the criticism and scrutiny.

His play will not be as aggressive as he originally wanted. What a dumbass. :clap

[Avitus1]

It must hurt to be so dumb...

[GSH]

So what WAS he saying? He said he was going to knock Tony to the floor, but what he really meant was that he intends to play him like normal? He intended to knock Tony to the floor, but he didn't expect it to hurt? His psychic abilities told him that Tony would happen to go to the floor the first time he drove the paint?

Horse shit! He said what he meant, without thinking. And now he's too big of a pussy to live with the consequences. He wanted the image of badass enforcer by "guaranteeing" that he would put Tony on the floor. Now that same guy wants to claim that he "would never hurt anybody"? Nobody's blowing anything out of proportion - he said what he said, and there's no other way to interpret it. And if he thought he could get by with it, he'd do exactly what he said.

The part that really pisses me off is that these things have a way of working in reverse. They are going to be so cautious about not looking like they are singling him out, that they will choke on their whistles. They need to make an example out of his dumb ass.

[onarollbaby]

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/Photoshop_madness/erick_dampier_genius.jpg

:lol :toast

[dallaskd]

There's a reason why they haven't won championships over the years. Besides Dirk, i can't think of one player on that team that has a good BB IQ.

Devin Harris was just starting to warm up and those fools traded him.

Kidd?

[raspsa]

Its on record and there's no taking it back.. stupid. Should have just kept quiet and let his playing do the talking..

[Manufan909]

From what timvp said in another thread, he apparently has 7 flagrants, not 2. Any articles make that correction?

[Obstructed_View]

So Devin would be an all star in Dallas as a 4th option compared to being the 1st in New Jersey?

Devin wouldn't be an all-star in Dallas just because the point guard position is so deep in the western conference, but he'd be just as good a player, and he's shown to be tough to guard and clutch. Antoine Wright may end up salvaging the Harris trade to move it out of contention for worst trades all-time.

[Kamnik]

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/Photoshop_madness/erick_dampier_genius.jpg

:lol:lol:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao:lmao:rollin:rollin:ro llin

[Danny.Zhu]

There's a reason why they haven't won championships over the years. Besides Dirk, i can't think of one player on that team that has a good BB IQ.

Devin Harris was just starting to warm up and those fools traded him.

I don't think Devin Harris has good BB IQ either. But you can certainly count Jason Kidd in.