"NBA has to ban flopping": Journalist calls out Anthony Davis' egregious flop to secure Lakers' win over Spurs in NBA Cup

In Friday's NBA Cup clash between the LA Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs, Anthony Davis erupted for a game-high 40 points while hauling down 12 rebounds. Despite his impressive play, Bleacher Report writer Andy Bailey called him out for flopping down the stretch.

With less than 50 seconds left, Chris Paul executed a pass and screen, handing the ball off to Victor Wembanyama for a 3-pointer. Anthony Davis collided with Paul and hit the deck, leading to referees calling an offensive foul on the Spurs guard.

Bailey argued that the NBA needs to take stricter action against flopping. In a pair of posts on X (formerly Twitter), he weighed in:

"I know I’m a broken record on this, but the NBA has to stop tiptoeing around this issue and actually ban flopping."

He then followed it up with another post, suggesting harsher penalties, including suspensions for first-time offenders.

"I’d go as far making the first offense a suspension."

NBA's L2M report doubles down on Chris Paul's offensive foul on Anthony Davis

While members of the NBA community like Andy Bailey called out Anthony Davis for flopping, the league's L2M (Last 2 Minutes) report from Friday's game upheld the offensive foul call against Chris Paul.

Although L2M reports sometimes contradict late-game decisions, Friday’s report from the Lakers-Spurs matchup posted by the @NBAOfficial X account defended the call, stating:

"Paul (SAS) releases his pass and then shifts to his left and into Davis (LAL), delivering contact that dislodges the defender during Paul's attempt to set a pick."

Following Friday's game, the two teams will meet three more times this season. Considering the late-game call on Davis and the tight finish, tensions may run high in the upcoming matchups.

The next time the two teams will play is on Wednesday, Nov. 27, with the Spurs set to host the Lakers. The final two meetings are set for Jan. 11 and Jan. 13, with both games taking place in Los Angeles.