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dbackjon wrote:NBA Fixed?


Color me - bad.

Willie wrote:NBA

National Bullshit Association

Seriously, professional basketball sucks. I can't think of a thing I like less to watch. I'll watch hours of PGA golf LONG before I'll watch the NBA.

Relationships between NBA players and referees were generally all over the board-love, hate, and everything in-between. Some players, even very good ones, were targeted by referees and the league because they were too talented for their own good. Raja Bell, formerly of the Phoenix Suns and now a member of the Charlotte Bobcats, was one of those players. A defensive specialist throughout his career, Bell had a reputation for being a "star stopper." His defensive skills were so razor sharp that he could shut down a superstar, or at least make him work for his points. Kobe Bryant was often frustrated by Bell's tenacity on defense. Let's face it, no one completely shuts down a player of Kobe's caliber, but Bell could frustrate Kobe, take him out of his game, and interrupt his rhythm.

You would think that the NBA would love a guy who plays such great defense. Think again! Star stoppers hurt the promotion of marquee players. Fans don't pay high prices to see players like Raja Bell-they pay to see superstars like Kobe Bryant score 40 points. Basketball purists like to see good defense, but the NBA wants the big names to score big points.

If a player of Kobe's stature collides with the likes of Raja Bell, the call will almost always go for Kobe and against Bell. As part of our ongoing training and game preparation, NBA referees regularly receive game-action video tape from the league office. Over the years, I have reviewed many recorded hours of video involving Raja Bell. The footage I analyzed usually illustrated fouls being called against Bell, rarely for him. The message was subtle but clear-call fouls against the star stopper because he's hurting the game.

My favorite Tommy Nunez story is from the 2007 playoffs when the San Antonio Spurs were able to get past the Phoenix Suns in the second round. Of course, what many fans didn't know was that Phoenix had someone working against them behind the scenes. Nunez was the group supervisor for that playoff series, and he definitely had a rooting interest.

Nunez loved the Hispanic community in San Antonio and had a lot of friends there. He had been a referee for 30 years and loved being on the road; in fact, he said that the whole reason he had become a group supervisor was to keep getting out of the house. So Nunez wanted to come back to San Antonio for the conference finals. Plus, he, like many other referees, disliked Suns owner Robert Sarver for the way he treated officials. Both of these things came into play when he prepared the referees for the games in the staff meetings. I remember laughing with him and saying, "You would love to keep coming back here." He was pointing out everything that Phoenix was able to get away with and never once told us to look for anything in regard to San Antonio. Nunez should have a championship ring on his finger.

TwinTownBisonFan wrote:how exactly can the nba refute any of this?

Stern gonna do the "he's a hacked off guy with an axe to grind and a book to sell" ???

problem with that is he names names... which would be a MASSIVE libel risk so either he's running a hell of a gambit - or this shit went down... and really i'd be more surprised if it were false frankly.

bench wrote:

TwinTownBisonFan wrote:how exactly can the nba refute any of this?

Stern gonna do the "he's a hacked off guy with an axe to grind and a book to sell" ???

problem with that is he names names... which would be a MASSIVE libel risk so either he's running a hell of a gambit - or this shit went down... and really i'd be more surprised if it were false frankly.

The entire excerpt sounded like any Bill Simmons column about NBA refs from the last seven years, only with informed speculation replaced by first-hand knowledge. Donaghy has basically confirmed every single thing Simmons has ever said about Dick Bavetta, the 2002 Western Conference Finals, how the league schedules its officials, etc.

TwinTownBisonFan wrote:so the NBA has now intimidated Random House in to canceling the book...

ESPN is attempting to bury the story (not a shock given their MASSIVE NBA contract)

the Association showing it's true colors yet again... this shit goes back to the 80s and Patrick Ewing...

spelunker wrote:Is the NBA still around? huh

JMU DJ wrote:

spelunker wrote:Is the NBA still around? huh

I always forget about it until after the football season... I mean after the college basketball season... I mean after Baseball season starts up again... June.

wideright82 wrote:

JMU DJ wrote:

I always forget about it until after the football season... I mean after the college basketball season... I mean after Baseball season starts up again... June.

What does June have to do with anything?