CLEVELAND Ohio After the Cavaliers defeated the Hawks in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals Sunday the talk was about the play that resulted in Al Horford's ejection for a Flagrant 2 foul.
Horford was tangled up with Cleveland Cavaliers guard Matthew Dellavedova when Horford threw an apparent elbow near Dellavedova's head and shoulder area.
After the game multiple Atlanta Hawks players said that Dellavedova has a track record of not playing the right way. Social media had fans saying that Dellavedova is a dirty player while other fans were saying that he was just a player making all of the hustle plays.
The phrase that kept getting said in the Hawks' locker room was he has a track record.
This is not the first scuffle that Dellavedova has been involved with in this postseason. It started in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Chicago Bulls when Dellavedova was tangled up with the Bulls' Taj Gibson.
On that play Gibson was also given a Flagrant 2 foul while Dellavedova was given a technical foul the day after the game.
Also in this series it was Dellavedova who was diving for a loose ball when Kyle Korver suffered an ankle injury that will force him to miss four to six months.
So is Dellavedova a dirty player as the Hawks suggest Or is he just doing what any NBA player should be doing Here is a case for both sides.
The case that Dellavedova is playing reckless
As Randall Terry once said Fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me. If this was the first time that Dellavedova had been involved in a scuffle Horford probably would not have responded like this.
Horford does not have a reputation of being a dirty player in fact the complete opposite. He is one of the more respected players in the NBA but he was obviously frustrated with Dellavedova.
His frustrations are probably in large part because of Korver's injury.
Of all three of the events the first one with Gibson is the one where Dellavedova was the most involved. The video does show that Dellavedova does lock Gibson's leg with his feet. Was that intentional No one knows but Dellavedova but the fact he has been involved in three situations like these opponents are going to start taking notice.
The case that Dellavedova is doing nothing wrong
Hearing LeBron James talk about his teammate after the game that is all you need to do know on where his teammates stand. Dellavedova is a player who was overlooked by many people as he went undrafted in 2013.
He is a player who is not going to overwhelm opponents with supreme quickness or athleticism and the way he going to make plays is to give it his all.
Dellavedova diving for a loose ball is no different than the sequence late in game 3 where nearly all 10 players on the court were diving on the floor for a loose ball James said.
Even in the postgame Horford said he didn't think what Dellavedova did was malicious but he was just frustrated in part because one of his teammates is out the rest of the playoffs.
Do you think Dellavedova is playing the right way or should he change his style You can vote in our poll and also let us know in the comments section below.
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