Andrew Bynum Continues to Test the Boundaries

Andrew Bynum continues to baffle and mystify.

The day after praising JaVale McGee’s hook shot, Bynum wanted to make sure McGee thought twice about going to the hoop.

In the first quarter of Game 5 between the Lakers and Nuggets, Bynum sent McGee to the deck. Now, I’m all about the hard playoff foul and making a statement, but you cannot grab a guy by his neck as you toss him to the ground.

Of course, that’s exactly what Bynum decided to do.

The game continued without incident after this play until the third quarter when Bynum was called for a technical for shoving Nuggets rookie Kenneth Faried as the Nuggets inbounded the ball.

It was a careless play, but it was another example of the character Bynum is developing into. While the passion and fire is to be admired, he also needs to keep his head. As a player’s value to his team increases, so too does the need to remain on the floor.

Bynum is coming into his own on the floor. He’s also testing the boundaries off of it. During the broadcast of Game 4, Kobe Bryant said he sees some of himself in Bynum. An overly aggressive player is always better than one who is passive, but Bynum needs to find the balance between out of control and overly controlled.