First NBA Flopping Warnings Issued To J.J. Barea And Donald Sloan [Video]

The NBA has spotted its first two floppers. The league issued its first flopping warnings of the season today to J.J. Barea of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Donald Sloan of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The NBA decided earlier this year that it would start handing out penalties for flopping during the 2012 NBA season. The league decided that it would not call flopping penalties during the game. Instead, a board of officials would replay controversial calls and issue warnings and fines after the game.

Barea and Sloan will not face a fine since this is their first infraction. If they are caught flopping again they will be fined $5,000. The fines will increase with each additional infraction. (You can see a breakdown of flopping penalties here.)

The fines might not be a big enough deterrent to stop players from flopping but the public humiliation might cause some players to hesitate before throwing their hands up in the air.

So in that vein: Shame on you J.J. Barea. Shame on you Donald Sloan.

The league defines flopping as: “Any physical act that appears to have been intended to cause the referees to call a foul on another player.”

Here’s the video of the NBA’s first two flopping penalties.

Do you think J.J. Barea and Donald Sloan earned their warnings?