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Phoenix Prosecutor Would Like a Gander at the Donaghy Files

Posted: Aug 26th 2008 1:21PM by Matt Moore (author feed)
Filed under: Suns, Western

Today's reminder that the Tim Donaghy scandal will not go quietly into that dark night comes from Arizona. A prosecutor in Arizona is following up on an earlier request for the documents pertaining to Donaghy's case. The prosecutor was told to wait till after Donaghy's federal trial concluded before processing his request. Donaghy's been sentenced, and now the prosecutor, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, wants his shot.

The claim is that he wants to explore whether Donaghy broke any state laws during his happy go funtime dancing with betting on games he worked. But in reality, we know the real reason behind the inquiry.

There's no doubt that the real reason behind the inquiry is to discover if Donaghy admitted to shenannigans during the Suns notoriously questionable playoffs series against the Spurs in 2007. It's likely that the investigation has very little to do with actually pursuing Donaghy, seeing as how he's, you know, already in the clink. But ever since people started pointing out that Donaghy was involved in that, um ... interesting series, there have been blood cries from the desert.

As someone that was as outraged by that series as anyone, I'll still say someone should tell Phoenix that this won't put Steve Nash's nose back together in Game 1, nor will it keep Amare Stoudemire on the bench after Robert Horry cheapshot 1.0. It's done.

Ref Scandal Not a Big Deal to this Basketball Junkie

Posted: Jul 20th 2007 2:32PM by Nate Jones (author feed)
Filed under: NBA Gambling, NBA Police Blotter, NBA Rumors

14 COMMENTS

I love basketball. So why in the world isn't this story hitting home with me?

For some reason the ref story isn't that big of a deal to me. Unless of course it comes out that the ref is 2006 Finals MVP Bennett Salvatore. I feel like there are bad apples in EVERY organization. So it's not a surprise that one ref out of all of the refs in the history of basketball decided to go down the gambling route.

As well, if you have played basketball competitively you have probably run into your fair share of referees that have some sort of bias. Either they want to keep the game close for entertainments sake or they are friends with someone on the other team.

My Point: On every level there are natural biases that basketball refs have. Everyone has an agenda. But in most cases the best team always seems to win. For example, even with the Wade/Salvatore situation in 2006, the Mavs still had every chance to win games 3-5, but they choked in the clutch and at the free throw line.

Continue Reading Ref Scandal Not a Big Deal to this Basketball Junkie

Richard Jefferson Shoots Down Ref Bias

Posted: May 7th 2007 2:51PM by Bethlehem Shoals (author feed)
Filed under: Nets, Eastern, NBA Media Watch

0 COMMENTS

I spent almost all of Friday afternoon deciphering that racist ref study. What I ended up discovering, with a little help, was that the media has completely misrepresented it. In other words, we got a story about white-on-black discrimination because it was the easiest sell. And was guaranteed to cause the most controversy.

That is, if you're talking to the general public. In today's Sam Smith column, Richard Jefferson gives his take on this possibility:

"What if you are half-black, half-white?" Jefferson asked. "Because there is some mix in my family. I wonder how that works. Am I going to be in foul trouble more?"

Smith adds his two sense on how far-fetched the whole thing sounds:

I have heard NBA players curse out referees in shocking language, and accuse them of holding grudges. Never-not once-have I ever heard a player complain a referee was racially biased.

Back to Jefferson: I know he's joking, but he's got a point about this hardly being a black-and-white issue. In addition to questions of who is what race, there's the ethnicity of the player fouled, which could further complicate things. Though if Jefferson feels he can make light of the whole thing, I'm inclined to trust his first-hand knowledge.

What That "Racist Refs" Paper Really Means

Posted: May 4th 2007 3:58PM by Bethlehem Shoals (author feed)
Filed under: Eastern, Western, NBA Media Watch

7 COMMENTS

So earlier this week, the FanHouse and every other media outlet in the world brought you some shocking news: refs make racially-biased calls. The world ended, Stern got involved, and an unassuming academic paper became headline news.

The thing is, very few people read the actual study, and the media got it all wrong. Man on a Rant informs us that if they had, they might have actually gotten the point of the research:

I'm simply trying to point out that the very root of this "scandal" shouldn't have to do with whether white refs call more fouls on black players than on white players; it's how they call these fouls compared to black refs... If the study's most fundamental data shows that there is an ambiguous discrepancy between officials calling fouls (i.e. are white refs under-calling fouls on white players or are black refs over-calling them?), why aren't we discussing THAT finding instead of immediately pointing a finger of blame?

This is only a small excerpt of the post, which really deserves a little bit of your time. However, allow me to translate: The study's not out to prove that white refs are biased against black players. Black players get the same number of fouls called no matter who the refs are. When it comes to white players, there's no way of knowing if white referees are calling too few fouls or black refs are calling too many.

Basically, the fouls called on black players are only important as a contrast with those called on white players. What's at issue here is pro- or anti-white bias; black players aren't discriminated against, but white players might have an advantage because they aren't getting penalized like they should.

Iverson Gets No Calls, Hell Freezes Over

Posted: Apr 27th 2007 1:18PM by Bethlehem Shoals (author feed)
Filed under: Nuggets, Spurs, Western, NBA Playoffs, Denver

1 COMMENT

So yesterday, we put you on to Manu Ginobili's "Eurostep." This was hilarious, but there was also the implication that the Nuggets weren't getting a fair shake from the refs.

From today's The Rocky Mountain News, here's George Karl with another curious detail:

"First time in A.I.'s career (of 64 playoff games) that he's never shot a free throw in a playoff game," Karl said. "Every time somebody goes to the rim, the whistles could blow, and he goes 25 times and doesn't get one."

If Allen Iverson isn't getting to the free throw line, something's not right. The man's game is driving fearlessly, inviting contact, and not backing down. Maybe he's a bit of an actor sometimes, and maybe stars get too many of these calls. But not a single foul? That's just weird. Especially considering the precedent set by all of his other playoff appearances. Based on the behavior of tons of past referees, this just doesn't make any sense.

Crawford: Bavetta is the Godfather

Posted: Apr 18th 2007 11:43AM by Bethlehem Shoals (author feed)
Filed under: Eastern, Western, NBA Rumors

1 COMMENT

Over at ESPN.com, Marc Stein's reporting that Joey Crawford might be hanging it up. That's not all, though. According to the same "informed sources," Crawford's unrepentant about ejecting Duncan. In fact, if give the chance, he'd do it all over again. He made as much clear to Stu Jackson yesterday.

So that's pretty juicy. But it has nothing on what follows: claims of a deep-seeded rivalry between Crawford and fellow refereeing elder Dick Bavetta:

Crawford also blasted fellow referee Dick Bavetta in the e-mail obtained by ESPN.com, hinting at divisions among referees between those who do and don't support Bavetta and writing that maybe Bavetta will wind up as the crew chief in Game 7 of the NBA "which is a travesty in itself you even being in the finals."

A little advice for Crawford: after Bavetta's epic race against Barkley, he's definitely winning the war of public perception. Maybe Duncan's far more of a pain in the rear than the league will ever let on. But as I said yesterday, Crawford's outburst was exactly the opposite of what people want refs to be. And even if Bavetta's no less mortal, he gives the impression of keeping order without placing himself above the game.

Then again, so did Don Corleone. Could Crawford be onto something after all?

Previously at the FanHouse:

Crawford vs Duncan: The tale of the Tape
Potential Reasons that Joey Crawford Has It in for Tim Duncan
What Should the NBA Do About Joey Crawford?
Joey Crawford Wants to Fight Tim Duncan

Rip Hamilton, Stealth Whiner

Posted: Mar 25th 2007 2:02PM by Bethlehem Shoals (author feed)
Filed under: Pistons, Eastern, Detroit

1 COMMENT

Quick, name the league leaders in technical fouls.

If you guessed Rasheed Wallace with 17, you shouldn't feel like it was a lame guess. Despite his ever-improving veteran rep, Wallace is still the king of the whistle. In fact, he's already earned a one-game suspension for having hit 16 on the season. Second on the list is the volatile Amare, currently sitting at 14.

And in third? None other than the exceedingly professional Rip Hamilton. From The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Defenders have been getting more physical with him, and Hamilton is getting frustrated that he is not getting calls from the referees. "He's got to keep his mouth shut," said coach Flip Saunders. "All of our players do."

I can think of at least twenty players who, given their image, I'd think would be ahead of Hamilton. Apparently, though, the refs don't feel that way. No one gets that many techs called on him if he's still considered a first-class gentleman.