Mike D’Antoni disapproves of fouling

The Los Angeles Lakers won on Tuesday with the Orlando Magic resorting to “Hack-a-Howard” and constantly parading Dwight Howard to the foul line, but that doesn’t mean coach Mike D’Antoni approves of “Hack-a-Whomever.” “I’m not criticizing anybody, but it’s part of the rules that’s just not great,” D’Antoni said before the Lakers played the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.

After the game, D’Antoni said Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn’s tactic created an inferior product for the paying customers in the seats.

“You try to win, I understand that, coaches got to do what they do, but it might be something that you can look at down the road,” D’Antoni said.

“It is boring, it’s not a fun way to play and it’s not fun for the fans to watch, but for the other team they’re trying to win,” Howard said Wednesday night.

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich used it against Shaquille O’Neal when he was the center on D’Antoni’s Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 2008 playoffs.

The NBA’s 10-man competition committee would have to review D’Antoni’s claim in order for the league to make a change to the rules to prevent intentional foul situations from continuing in the future.