Gary Trent Jr. Gave Us The Flop Of The Year Against The Thunder

In some ways, flopping is a lost art in the NBA world. Some players, especially superstars, still perform at a high level in the flopping space, accentuating contact to draw whistles and generate free throw attempts. At the same time, the NBA does have a system in place (albeit one that is rarely used) to fine those who are deemed to have committed egregious flops. On Monday evening, however, Portland Trail Blazers guard Gary Trent Jr. rose to another level in the second half against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Trent Jr. took it upon himself to really attempt to sell a flop in transition and the visual results were magnificent.

First, that is anything but a natural motion. There is some gamesmanship involved with attempting to sell any call, but it is almost as if Trent is leaping off a diving board, and the flop was so comical that Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander simply couldn’t contain his amusement.

For one thing, Trent Jr. slid a (very) long way on the floor after he landed. It’s truly a work of art.

There was no foul called on the play, for the record, with the ball caroming off Oklahoma City and Portland retaining possession. As such, no real harm was done and everyone can laugh about a truly brilliant attempt. Now, Trent Jr. must cross his fingers in hopes to avoid a call from the league that would be accompanied by a few thousand dollars leaving his bank account.