I just posted this paragraph on another thread, but it fits here:
How can David Stern, as a lawyer, not see the inherent conflict of interest the league has with Lebron? The 'Global Icon' is their biggest meal ticket, does the most commercials, and is basically who they have decided to push hardest as the next MJ... even though he hasn't really earned 'next MJ' status but that's another story.
If you're marketing this young man as the future of the game, and he's bringing in the most cash, and he's playing pretty poorly... doesn't it start to seem odd he gets every single foul call his way?!?
Game 6 first half Big Baby intercepts an entry pass to Igaulskus after anticipating the play perfectly, but the refs think "This guy's a nobody, a rookie, he can't possibly make a good play, Foul!" Lebron takes an out-of-control fallaway and they think "There's no way "King James" could miss on his own, Foul!" It's a sickening double-standard.
Stern, forget about marketing Lebron : He's just a flopper who yells at his mom!
TP, great examples to show refs' bias, something I think they have to have, because on 3/4 of the calls they are guessing in my opinion, rather than purposely slanting it to favor one team or the other. Most are too old and the game is too fast, so they use their biases' to guide them, like BBD being a rook who is aggressive and gets alot of fouls this way, must be a foul, James ability to draw contact and then exaggerating (faking?) it, they call it.
From an objective point of view, it seems simple to suggest they should just call it as they see it, but from my observance of thousands of games, they just aren't capable of doing that, the game is too fast and they are overwhelmed by it. So they count on "educated" guesses, having been "educated" (partly by Stern I believe) about where the player ranks in the pantheon, what his tendencies are, etc. It is not at the point where things are actually scripted, but it doesn't take a conspiracy theorist to see that there is a level of influence over the refs in the way they make calls.
Traveling and block/charges are clearly influenced by what the league has asked them to emphasize. This is what permits Ginobli to take 3-4 steps on drives to the hoop without a call, but when KG rips through with the ball, maybe his pivot foot shifted a bit, maybe not, but no clear advantage was gained by taking an extra step as in the Ginobli example, this will be called a travel. Why? Because the league asked refs to emphasize the foot/shot fake and travels on that play this year, so when a ref sees a basketball play that merely resembles this call, they gleefully show they have heard their marching orders and make the call.
I don't personally believe the refs "cost" the Celtics the game the other night, too many other things factor into that to blame the refs, but can anyone say that the charge on Pierce would have been called if the defender had been anyone other than James on his home court? That wasn't even good defense, James is an average defender at best, he was a step behind Pierce having been picked initially, and he just dove under Paul's legs, Pierce had no choice but to knock him over since he took his legs out. Jr. High refs are not even duped by the kid who jumps underneath a dribbler, causing him to fall on top of him, James would never have received this call in high school or college basketball, that is how easy a call that really was. So how could the NBA refs, supposedly the top of their profession, get that wrong?
LeBron has not even learned how to play good defense fundamentally, he has learned how to use his reputation to manipulate the league. Because Pierce had earlier anticipated LeBron's next step and got to the spot, causing James to push off with his off arm, James attempted to mimic this exact play, knowing one had gone against him and if he made Pierce knock him over by taking out his legs, he would likely get "this" one. But this play only loosely resembled the previous play, it was clear James was forcing a call to be made by making Pierce fall on top of him, and the refs went right ahead and called it his way. By making Pierce fall, he eliminated the choice of a no-call, and took the risk of a foul on himself, just knowing who he was and where he was. Nobody may have told that ref to make that call or give the Cavs an advantage, but if one does not recognize that there was politics in what the ref did call, they are not paying attention.
The part that is truly riling to me, is that LBJ has not come close to actually
earning Jordan-status, yet he behaves in a way that he expects that level of treatment. Jordan toiled 7 years against Boston and Detroit, putting up some phenomenal games before ever winning anything, and was 3 Championships deep before he started getting calls that went his way when there was a doubt. James gets that treatment now, and the few times he does not, he is beside himself, something that at 23 and no Titles just makes no sense, except if you consider the league has created this monster.
As a diehard C's fan, I am not at all comfortable with the whole pregame today asking if LeBron can "close it out" today as the promo, and hear Breen say, "the road team is bound to win in this series now" and "this will define LeBron's legacy" as if the outcome is a fait accompli.