Once again the officiating was appalling. The refs exercised too much influence over the game and I think they penalized Boston in a way that seemed blatantly contrived.
On a day when former NBA ref, Tim Donaghy, testified that officiating crews had altered playoff games by order of NBA officials, the refs in Game 2 didn’t make a strong case for the assumed objectivity of their guild. They called so many weak fouls both ways that it really limited the intensity of both teams. Almost every time two players from opposing teams went up and fought for a rebound, it was called a foul. That just led to more stars sitting on the bench in foul trouble, and teams being in the bonus halfway through each quarter. Not to say that there’s anything wrong with those circumstances, but the glaring inconsistency of calls during the most important games of the year is marring what was supposed to be a historic series.
Now, I don’t usually make political statements in my Lakers Blog, and I’ll try not to with this post. But the lack of regulation in NBA officiating, highlighted by lop-sided high-profile games like Game 2 and last night, and by obvious missed calls like Derek Fisher’s apparent foul on Brent Barry at the end of Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals, echoes the problems of unchecked authority outside of the arena of sport. There seem to be no repercussions for law/rule enforcers who themselves act outside the rules. Police can shoot over 50 times at Sean Bell, or 41 times at Amadou Diallo (both unarmed), kill them, and still be acquitted of all charges.
On a day when former NBA ref, Tim Donaghy, testified that officiating crews had altered playoff games by order of NBA officials, the refs in Game 2 didn’t make a strong case for the assumed objectivity of their guild. They called so many weak fouls both ways that it really limited the intensity of both teams. Almost every time two players from opposing teams went up and fought for a rebound, it was called a foul. That just led to more stars sitting on the bench in foul trouble, and teams being in the bonus halfway through each quarter. Not to say that there’s anything wrong with those circumstances, but the glaring inconsistency of calls during the most important games of the year is marring what was supposed to be a historic series.
Now, I don’t usually make political statements in my Lakers Blog, and I’ll try not to with this post. But the lack of regulation in NBA officiating, highlighted by lop-sided high-profile games like Game 2 and last night, and by obvious missed calls like Derek Fisher’s apparent foul on Brent Barry at the end of Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals, echoes the problems of unchecked authority outside of the arena of sport. There seem to be no repercussions for law/rule enforcers who themselves act outside the rules. Police can shoot over 50 times at Sean Bell, or 41 times at Amadou Diallo (both unarmed), kill them, and still be acquitted of all charges.
A dereliction of duty in this case, as recent officiating has done more to determine the outcome of games rather than serve its purpose of maintaining the rules of them. Yes, the two are related and are going to overlap, but even a child could see who the refs were helping in these games. I don’t think NBA referees will be reprimanded for killing the spirit of the games they’re supposed to be facilitating.
The Finals would be a lot better if they were officiated in the same way as all the rest of the games. C’mon, NBA…you change the rules in the ninth inning.
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