Rockets' Dwight Howard won't be suspended for Game 5 vs. Warriors

Houston Rockets Dwight Howard will not be suspended for Game 5 of the Western Conference finals, the NBA said on Tuesday.

Had the NBA upgraded Howard's flagrant foul one in Monday's Game 4 to a flagrant foul two, he would have missed Wednesday's game. Howard has three flagrant foul points in the playoffs and four flagrant foul results in an automatic suspension during the postseason.

"The feeling was that, although it was a very close call, I want to emphasize that because it was a blow to the face, it was not with an elbow," NBA president of basketball operations Rod Thorn said. "It was with the back of the hand, and open hand, and Howard was trying to extricate himself.

"Bogut had his arm over Howard's arm, trying to extricate himself. As he did, he flailed his arm backwards and hit Bogut in the face. My feeling was it unnecessary which comes under the guise of flagrant one but it was not unnecessary and excessive."

For a flagrant foul two, "it has to be unnecessary and excessive," Thorn said. "There was an extenuating circumstances in that Howard was trying to extricate his arm and he just flailed backward."

Thorn also explained the difference between Howard's action and the action that earned Hawks F-C Al Horford a flagrant foul two in Game 3 against the Cavaliers.

"Howard's contact was in part to extricate himself. It was unnecessary but not excessive. With Horford, the contact was in retaliation as Horford himself said. He was upset because he felt (Matthew) Dellavedova dived into his legs. That fits the criteria for unnecessary and excessive."

The NBA conducted its regular process for reviewing fouls, interviewing players and looking at several angles of the play on video. There was a substantial conversation about the play inside the league office, and as Thorn mentioned, it was close to flagrant two. But his open hand making contact, rather than a closed fist, saved Howard from a suspension.

Game 5 is Wednesday in Oakland, and the Rockets, down 3-1 in the series, will try to send the series back to Houston with Howard in the lineup.

Howard received his flagrant foul in the fourth quarter of Houston's 128-115 victory. Golden State center Andrew Bogut and Howard tussled after Josh Smith turned the ball over.

The two were trying to gain position under the basket. Bogut gave Howard a shove and Howard responded, swinging his left arm back. The refs issued Howard a flagrant foul one for "making unnecessary contact to the head."

There was some concern the NBA would review the play and upgrade the call to a flagrant foul two. Internally, the Rockets did not believe Howard's foul would be upgraded, and Rockets coach Kevin McHale said it was a matter of the second guy getting caught.

"I don't know about the play. He just tried to get him off him," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said Tuesday morning. "Bogut is just grabbing him and as always the second foul gets called. As usual the second foul gets called. I think you can turn around and look at the guy like – he swipes his arm back because he felt Bogut is grabbing him. But again, in our league it's been that way since I first got in the league. They usually call the second one all the time. I guess the one thing we'll learn is that we should be the first one to grab."

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS HIGHLIGHTS