The NBA's Elephant in the Room Continued
June 8th 2009 21:00
The corporate NBA certainly has done itself no favors in repairing its tarnished image regarding its officiating crisis, but let's not lay all the blame on the league or let the referees themselves off the hook.
There are plenty of problems with the refs themselves and how the league chooses them. Given the corporate nature of the NBA cash cow and the constant media scrutiny, I feel like the refs are handcuffed and set up to fail by the league's rules and reffing philosophy. On the other hand, there are countless examples of game whistles that are absolutely indefensible by the zebras themselves.
Lets start specific and finish broad.
Firstly, isn't it ridiculous that I can rattle off the names of 8-10 NBA refs without breaking a sweat? Dick Bavetta, Joey Crawford, Steve Javie, Danny Crawford, Marc Davis, Mark Wunderlich, Scott Foster, Tim Donaghy (just kidding). By the way, that list is in descending order of most terrible ref. Why else would I possibly know these names if the reffing wasn't so horrible that I can tell how the game will be reffed just based on who is reffing it? We're not supposed to know the names of the refs in our sports. They shouldn't stand out, it shouldn't be about them. It should be as if they're not even there.
Secondly, in what other league is there an ongoing battle of ego between the best power forward of all time (Tim Duncan) and a 57 year old referee (Joey Crawford)? Not only is Crawford a terrible whistleblower, he's got an ego the size of the millionaires he's supposed to officiate. The result? A bizarre one-way feud with one of the game's quietest and most honorable guys. On April 15, 2007, Crawford ejected Duncan while he was sitting on the bench. After the game, Duncan alleged that Crawford challenged him to a fight on the court. Duncan allegedly lobbed an expletive Crawford's way and then laughed at his call from the bench, which what earned him the ejection. Crawford was suspended for the rest of the season...from reffing. Really? The ref got suspended? I didn't even know that was possible before the immortal Joey Crawford.
Thirdly, the NBA needs to revamp its official selection system. As it stands, aspiring refs have to try out, which isn't ridiculous in itself. The fact that they have to pay a fee to try out is the ridiculous part. What better way to discourage young, new blood from trying out by making them pay. Do you think they weren't intimidated enough already?
3b. I mentioned Dick Bavetta and crowned him "most terrible ref" earlier. But honestly, its not his fault. Its the league's fault for letting a 69 year old run up and down with the most athletic 25 year olds on the planet. Practically, how can Bavetta correctly execute his duties? The game is so fast that its hard to see things clearly and make calls for a pair of 35 year old eyes. How much more for Bavetta? Further, how else can this guy keep up unless he's the trail official every single trip up and down the floor? We can't expect him to anticipate the action and THEN beat LeBron and Chris Paul down the floor to the opposite baseline.
It would make too much sense for the NBA to enlist a fleet of spry 28-40 year old guys with lower level experience to ref its players, right? Whenever I see Bavetta's corpse loosening up his hammies and doing his arm circles before tipoff, I just have to shake my head.
Lastly, the inconsistency within single games is maddening. Early in the 1st and 2nd quarters, the refs will let more physicality go and keep the action moving. Late in the game though, they tighten up, thinking for some inane reason that they have to control the flow of the game by making calls on position battles 25 feet away from the ball. I can't count how many times I've jumped up and yelled at the TV after a ridiculous touch foul on the wrist sends a guy to the free throw line. Hello! These guys are 6'8" and weigh 258 pounds. A slap on the wrist or a bump on the arm does not constitute disadvantageous contact or break their path to the hoop. The superstar treatment is also a problem: the Kobes, Lebrons, Chris Pauls, and Dwyane Wades of the league receive several phantom fouls a game, which is why some of these guys average 6 more free throw attempts a game than the average player. Its not because they're getting fouled that much more. The refs need to call the game with 2:26 left in a 3 point game the same way they do at the beginning of the 2nd quarter. In other words, LET THE PLAYERS DECIDE THE OUTCOME.
So these are the most glaring of the NBA reffing travesties in my opinion. Several things need to be done to fix the system, none of which require more than a lick of common sense. The solutions are obvious to everyone else, but the NBA doesn't seem to get it.
Special ref statistic: The Dallas Mavericks are 1-21 in games reffed by Danny Crawford over the last several years. Coincidence or not? You decide.
There are plenty of problems with the refs themselves and how the league chooses them. Given the corporate nature of the NBA cash cow and the constant media scrutiny, I feel like the refs are handcuffed and set up to fail by the league's rules and reffing philosophy. On the other hand, there are countless examples of game whistles that are absolutely indefensible by the zebras themselves.
Lets start specific and finish broad.
Firstly, isn't it ridiculous that I can rattle off the names of 8-10 NBA refs without breaking a sweat? Dick Bavetta, Joey Crawford, Steve Javie, Danny Crawford, Marc Davis, Mark Wunderlich, Scott Foster, Tim Donaghy (just kidding). By the way, that list is in descending order of most terrible ref. Why else would I possibly know these names if the reffing wasn't so horrible that I can tell how the game will be reffed just based on who is reffing it? We're not supposed to know the names of the refs in our sports. They shouldn't stand out, it shouldn't be about them. It should be as if they're not even there.
Secondly, in what other league is there an ongoing battle of ego between the best power forward of all time (Tim Duncan) and a 57 year old referee (Joey Crawford)? Not only is Crawford a terrible whistleblower, he's got an ego the size of the millionaires he's supposed to officiate. The result? A bizarre one-way feud with one of the game's quietest and most honorable guys. On April 15, 2007, Crawford ejected Duncan while he was sitting on the bench. After the game, Duncan alleged that Crawford challenged him to a fight on the court. Duncan allegedly lobbed an expletive Crawford's way and then laughed at his call from the bench, which what earned him the ejection. Crawford was suspended for the rest of the season...from reffing. Really? The ref got suspended? I didn't even know that was possible before the immortal Joey Crawford.
Thirdly, the NBA needs to revamp its official selection system. As it stands, aspiring refs have to try out, which isn't ridiculous in itself. The fact that they have to pay a fee to try out is the ridiculous part. What better way to discourage young, new blood from trying out by making them pay. Do you think they weren't intimidated enough already?
3b. I mentioned Dick Bavetta and crowned him "most terrible ref" earlier. But honestly, its not his fault. Its the league's fault for letting a 69 year old run up and down with the most athletic 25 year olds on the planet. Practically, how can Bavetta correctly execute his duties? The game is so fast that its hard to see things clearly and make calls for a pair of 35 year old eyes. How much more for Bavetta? Further, how else can this guy keep up unless he's the trail official every single trip up and down the floor? We can't expect him to anticipate the action and THEN beat LeBron and Chris Paul down the floor to the opposite baseline.
It would make too much sense for the NBA to enlist a fleet of spry 28-40 year old guys with lower level experience to ref its players, right? Whenever I see Bavetta's corpse loosening up his hammies and doing his arm circles before tipoff, I just have to shake my head.
Lastly, the inconsistency within single games is maddening. Early in the 1st and 2nd quarters, the refs will let more physicality go and keep the action moving. Late in the game though, they tighten up, thinking for some inane reason that they have to control the flow of the game by making calls on position battles 25 feet away from the ball. I can't count how many times I've jumped up and yelled at the TV after a ridiculous touch foul on the wrist sends a guy to the free throw line. Hello! These guys are 6'8" and weigh 258 pounds. A slap on the wrist or a bump on the arm does not constitute disadvantageous contact or break their path to the hoop. The superstar treatment is also a problem: the Kobes, Lebrons, Chris Pauls, and Dwyane Wades of the league receive several phantom fouls a game, which is why some of these guys average 6 more free throw attempts a game than the average player. Its not because they're getting fouled that much more. The refs need to call the game with 2:26 left in a 3 point game the same way they do at the beginning of the 2nd quarter. In other words, LET THE PLAYERS DECIDE THE OUTCOME.
So these are the most glaring of the NBA reffing travesties in my opinion. Several things need to be done to fix the system, none of which require more than a lick of common sense. The solutions are obvious to everyone else, but the NBA doesn't seem to get it.
Special ref statistic: The Dallas Mavericks are 1-21 in games reffed by Danny Crawford over the last several years. Coincidence or not? You decide.
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