To the detriment of nearly everyone involved, the NFL has attempted to legalize football mockery.

But the basketball court sure is still a safe place for some harmless schadenfreude. He was not in Detroit on Sunday. Pistons rookie Kid Cunningham has discovered the hard way.

Cunningham beat Cameron Payne outside the baseline and sent home a reverse win over the Phoenix Suns goalkeeper during the third quarter of a Pistons Suns game on Sunday. To make sure everyone was clear about who had just dunked, Cunningham briefly pointed to Payne before returning to the defense.

But before the Suns could get their half-court attack, a whistle blew.

Cunningham’s taunts provoked the crew in charge as a technical error. As this was his second technique in the game, Cunningham’s day was ended by expulsion. After the match, Chief Crew Chief Kevin Cutler confirmed that Cunningham had been assessed as technical “because of physical taunts for referring to the defender”.

As with most funny NFL flags, nearly all of the participants fared worse on the call.

Who benefits from this?

Pistons fans who spent their money and Sunday afternoon on NBA basketball lost another best reason to stay in the fourth quarter of what was then a 20-point game for the road team. Cunningham was the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft in July and arguably the only reason he tuned in for the Pistons or showed up to watch the Pistons, who are otherwise in the midst of a miserable season.

The players don’t want this. It was evident that the sun was content to respond to the insult, and not the trees. Whatever imagined revenge the NBA intends to prevent with such a whistle is entirely imagined. This is basketball. Players are dunking. Players talk about trash. Nobody will be injured.

But the Pistons, their fans, and the National Basketball Association all suffered on Sunday thanks to an official quick whistle.