NBA Ref Conspiracies Now Given Some Thought

Many people view most conspiracies and conspiracy theorists as, for lack of a better word, crazy.

In some cases, they're right. I've read and heard about some conspiracies that are comical, they're so absurd. There are others I feel are probably too far-fetched to be true, but ones that I don't completely rule out. There are yet others that I give more serious thought.

With the events that have unfolded in the NBA this past week, I can only imagine what some of the conspiracy theorists' reactions were/are. I wonder if Dallas Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban was/is one of those theorists.

It was made known this past week that the FBI is investigating former NBA referee Tim Donaghy for potentially betting on games he officiated and making calls which helped manipulate the results to favor his heavy bet. How long did he officiate? Thirteen years. He has said in recent days that he will cooperate and rumor has it that others may have been involved too.

This has been a bad month in sports. The Barry Bonds' steroid scandal is ever present and especially now, as Bonds is only three homers away from passing Hank Aaron as the all-time home run leader. Michael Vick was indicted on two felony counts affiliating him with dog fighting. Now, Tim Donaghy, a thirteen year NBA official, is being investigated for possibly betting on games he refereed and making calls in order to win money at game's end.

I admit to not watching much basketball anymore (except for the playoffs), but I have witnessed more iffy and more downright bad calls by the referees in basketball than football or baseball through the years. Just this past year, the Phoenix Suns' star, Steve Nash, got deliberately kneed in the groin and no foul was called. Even after reviewing the tape, officials claimed that the knee was accidental. Uh-huh. Two Suns' players were suspended for stepping one foot onto the court when a brawl was about to ensue. They didn't get involved in the fight at all. All they did was stand up, and walk one foot onto the court. It's been difficult for me to watch NBA basketball at times because of the officiating. Officials' don't dictate the pace of a baseball game. The pitchers, hitters, and managers do. They don't dictate the pace in a football game either. The players and coaches do that, as well. In basketball, while some officials allow the players and coaches to dictate the pace, I see the officials doing this a lot more in this sport than in any other. It was ridiculous at times in the playoffs this year. An up-and-down fast-paced shoot-out in the first half became a snoozer in the second. Fouls that weren't called in the first half were called twice over in the second. The teams went from living on the fast break to living at the free throw line.

I can only imagine what Mark Cuban is thinking right now. "Hey, I told you all so!" He has not shied away from criticizing NBA officials through the years and has had to pay hefty fines due to that.

I wonder if Donaghy and others are found guilty, will the coaches, owners, and players who were fined for criticizing these very officials in the past be reimbursed, since, well, they were right? It's not like they NEED that money back, because they're millionaires, but it's just the whole principle of the thing.

Commissioner David Stern will have to do some soul-searching this off-season in order to instill some credibility back into the NBA. Unfortunately, whether Donaghy is found guilty or not, there were many critics of NBA officiating to begin with, so when word of this got spread, one can only imagine what this had already done to the NBA image.
While I still stand by my word that Donaghy and the others are innocent until proven otherwise, I'm sure many will say that if proven guilty, it didn't surprise them much.