Is that a travel?
By now, it’s getting harder and harder for hoops fans to distinguish between what’s traveling and what’s not. Part of the reason is that the NBA, far and away the premier basketball league in the world, has been, shall we say, lenient in calling travels.
As far as Philadelphia 76ers All-Star Paul George is concerned, NBA referees might even be a bit too lenient—like turning a blind eye—when it comes to laying down the law on traveling violations.
“There’s a lot of traveling that goes on in the NBA that refs just don’t [call],” Paul said in his podcast, Podcast P with Paul. “They’re not looking for it, they’re not reffing. I’ll be on the bench, and I’m like ‘Damn, he traveled!’”
NBA fans should know. Search “uncalled travels in the NBA” on YouTube and you’ll see what Paul means: Players getting away with blatant travels. Some of these uncalled traveling violations are so egregious it’s unbelievable they weren’t called in the first place.
Paul Double Down on the Truth: Players Are Getting Away with It
The nine-time All-Star didn’t hold back in speaking his truth, even mentioning LeBron James as among those who regularly get away with uncalled travels.
“There are some obvious travels that you’ll watch on TV where a guy has a fastbreak and takes five steps and no ref calls it or the ‘Bron [LeBron James] situation where he’s walking, talking, and directing and like taking steps…,” Paul noted. “If you really watch a game, you can probably spot 5 to 10 travels…”
Five to ten uncalled travels might be a fair estimate—or a very generous one. Either way, it can’t be denied that travels go uncalled several times every game.
George knows it. Fans know it. Maybe it’s time the NBA does something about it.
