Objectively speaking, the referees haven't been much of a factor in this series, and that's how it's supposed to be. I'm sure some fans in Orlando will disagree -- what about Pau's goaltending? Or Kobe's elbow? Those are two isolated incidents that might have warranted a whistle, but for the most part, the Lakers have gone up 3-1 despite the referees, not because of them.
Consider: the Magic attempted 18 free throws in the fourth quarter and overtime in Game 4 before the Lakers attempted one -- and the only reason the Lakers made a single trip to the line was because Mickael Pietrus committed a flagrant foul in the final seconds.
Despite what a few desperate 
The officials were a non-factor in Game 1 of the Finals, and frankly, that's just how we like it. But that was largely because the Lakers were able to get out to a big lead and never look back, and there's no guarantee that the same thing is going to happen in Game 2.
It's a post-game tradition among NBA fans to talk about the officiating -- but why wait until the game is over? Before each game of the NBA Finals, we'll take a close look at the crew assigned to the game to see if there's any trends that bear watching. Tonight's crew: Dan Crawford (pictured, talking with Stan Van Gundy), Joe DeRosa and Ken Mauer. 
