While the legality of the Bonn assistant coach's actions to gain insights into Unicaja's strategy during timeouts remains uncertain, Kendrick Perry suggested that this incident should prompt a reevaluation of what is considered acceptable behavior within the sport.
German league leaders Telekom Baskets Bonn beat hosts Unicaja Malaga in the second BCL semi-final 69-67 on Friday night and will have an opportunity to claim the trophy in Sunday's final vs. Hapoel Jerusalem.
However, the shine of Bonn's achievement was tarnished by allegations surrounding one of their assistant coaches.
It is alleged that Telekom Baskets assistant was watching the broadcast to see and listen to Unicaja's strategy during timeouts and report that to his own team.
Unicaja guard Kendrick Perry expressed his view on the situation.
"This is really unfortunate. Not only for us, as Unicaja, but for the Bonn players and the game as a whole," he wrote. "Bonn is a very capable team of beating anyone without underhanded tricks and tactics like this.
I'm not sure how legal this is, but if it is in fact legal, then maybe we should reevaluate what is and is not ok. As competitors, we're taught to win and lose with dignity.
In no way am I taking away from the PLAYERS of Bonn. They played a hard-fought game and deserved to be in a position to win. But as someone who loves the game of basketball, it's just disheartening to see. But it is what it is."
Perry produced a team-high 12 points for Unicaja (3/12 FG, 4/4 FT, 4 REB, 7 AST, 3 TO), but missed what could have been the game-winning shot.
This is the first time since 2018 that no Spanish team makes the BCL final and also the second time in BCL history that the host team of the Final Four doesn't make the title game.
Game highlights:
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