jakstad

By now I'm sure most of you have read the excerpts from Tim Donaghy's unpublished book. Some of them, in retrospect, make all-too-much sense. I mean, some of the things he says like how referee's made a bet on who would call the first foul. If you've noticed, generally the first foul isn't called for a minute or two unless realllly obvious. I mean, sure you can argue that they don't want to mess with the flow of the game, but other examples are far more true. If you look at how refs try to make the games "closer" by calling debatable fouls and "fake" travels. For example when the Nuggets played the Raptors, the Raptors were killing in the first quarter and part of the second and then JR Smith heats up, and all of a sudden Melo and Nene and others are getting calls and Bosh is getting hammered and nothing. Plus, Sonny Weems was called for a BS travel and I think Belinelli or Jack was as well.

Well, some could argue that perhaps when teams win home games their fan base increases, but how can you mess with the sanctity of the NBA and the hard-work put forth by the players just to make some extra revenue? I mean it's ridiculous. Teams that are supposed to win, when at home, magically win all of those games. Yeah, they are better overall, but when you break down a full game there are blatant attempts to make the game close. I find this absolutely disgraceful and disrespectful to HONEST NBA fans and players. Yes, for the casual fan who paid 50 bucks to see LeBron or Kobe, a close game will make them want come back - especially if Kobe hits the game winner. But how can a league - a professional league - cheat intentionally, not just cheat on the court, but cheat their true fans.

To Donaghy, the league says that he is lying, but what reason does he have to lie? Publicity? Maybe, but when what he says has some continuity and visual proof then how can it go so far behind the scenes. I mean, he bet with the mafia to make scores larger, but can one referee really pull off something like this? I'm of the belief that he was the only one caught.

I'm just wondering what you people out there think of this?

Is it true or just a way to make Donaghy some extra cash?

Do you accept the NBA for what it is - even if they cheat?

and, if you believe the same as I do, what steps can be taken to stop this and create a new, cleaner NBA?

READ THIS PLEASE...AND COMMENT. I THINK THAT CHANGE STARTS HERE!

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2 members found this post helpful.

lumi398

The change starts here..... Well won't we all love that. Unfortunately that won't happen. This issue is true and if it weren't for money, the NBA wouldn't even exist. Same with the Health Industry. The person who created the NBA was able to put a sport - basketball and income together. The Drafting process is almost like a hiring process of the NBA, they draft the best players like hiring the best employees who can make the most money for their business. You can't stop this since the people who created the system are already far ahead and have lots of money and people power to support them. It actually goes further than this, the NBA is getting paid by other parties as well - i.e. the mainstream media to keep the people occupied with sports rather than real issues that are important for civilization's future,,,, but i won't go there.

I am not sure as to how extreme the refs are fixing the games, but if they are to obtain more ticket sales then that is very possible.

This is pretty bad, but not as bad as other industries since this is the same method used by the health industry in North America to gain money, only this is worse since they are cheating you not just of your dollars, but of your health and possibly life.

I've had many health problems and went to see the doctor only to find out the medicine didn't solve my problems, only had temporary masking of the symptoms. Not only that the side effects were all similar in the vast majority of the drugs they recommended: suppression of the nervous system, fatigue, light headedness, errectile dysfunction, lower interest in sexual activity.

Sooner or later you think someone won't catch onto this trend? The drugs don't solve the problems but if the patients keep buying the drugs then it is nonstop revenue for the doctors and the drug companies.

Your post just suggests that the NBA is trying to earn money along these lines.

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1 members found this post helpful.

jakstad

Excellent points, but you have to consider that when many people think like you, change is impossible. I am not revolution supporter, don't get me wrong, but I do believe that in the case of the NBA - not healthcare because I have not researched it enough - change is possible. Although it is a multi-billion dollar firm, with enough exposure this issue can be eliminated. Just like the steroid era in baseball - did Bud Selig know about steroids, of course he did, but it made him money. As the media and fans-alike started to get wind of the issue, the MLB changed sides and decided to blame it all on the players, when we all know full-well that the MLB supported steroids anonymously.

If writers, who aren't afraid of the NBA, start to write articles on poor refereeing and game-to-game trends (such as home game spreads, turnovers for home team vs. away team (referee controlled turnovers - travels, 3-seconds, etc.), and other stats) then awareness may be raised to the point where David Stern starts to place the blame on somebody and then the game can become clean. Let's be honest, a clean NBA would be just as entertaining as a dirty one. Sure Kobe won't get to the line 20 times a game, and 81 points will not happen, however there will be more fluidity without referee interference.

And a clear-cut example of change in the NBA is the travelling rule. The NBA officially allowed one step before, and it was widely accepted that two steps was fair. However after last season, when a certain referee said that the rulebook was not what they followed, the NBA decided to change this rule. Media attention + fan outrage + crab dribble (lol) changed this.

In terms of healthcare, it is far more complex trying to sway the people who run this country to take down pharmaceutical companies that take advantage of us, yet make up a large portion of our economic success. But in terms of the NBA, and sports, change is possible due to the number of fans/media vs. the power of the commissioner of some sports league. Huge difference. Small issue in relativity to "real issues", but I'm not trying to change the world, just trying to fix the NBA, my passion.

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BballWatcher

I disagree with the comparison - the health industry would still exist without money. It probably wouldn't have the same form as it does today, but taking care of each-other has always been part of human history, in one way or another.

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soulstice99

I agree with Jakstad. I've noticed this (as I'm sure many others had) long before the Donaghy revelations came out. In order to help home teams or a better playoff matchup, the NBA refs are given "latitude" to facilitate a particular result. Rather than observers of the game, they become participants, like film directors who are instructed to manufacture a thrilling finale to a game/season or create a playoff matchup. Donaghy mentioned Dick Bavetta as the NBA's go to referee for this.

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0nekhmer

not really true. average teams will take what their opposing defences (including refs) give them. the good teams will take whatever they want.

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lumi398

Orlando is a good team, Howard has 2 fouls so far. If he is forced out of the game with less minutes to play you think it won't affect the team?

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iRaptor

Where have u been jakstad? There is no doubt in my mind that there is something fishy going on in the nba. Vegas has some good connections with the commissioners of sports

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