Two Words: The refs

[Bahku]

I tend to blame the refs when:

1) there is a huge disparity in ft attempts
2) there are a number of missed calls in favor of one team
 a) there were some turnovers on atlanta that were "overlooked"

BUT the kicker is
3) when the refs feel the need to cover up their mistakes with bravado, handing out techs, and making themselves a part of the game

I have to say, I really can't trust that NBA officiating is fair and balanced when I watch Kobe or LeBron get kid gloves. Or when I watch games officiated differently depending on how much time is left on the clock.

I am bewildered when people use #1 as evidence of poor reffing. Based on recent studies, I consider equal foul calls as more suspect since refs are so prone to unconscious makeup calls.

There is no reason to expect anything near equal foul shot attempts. What makes point 1 particularly odd is that the disparity in fouls committed in last night's game was only 5 (21-16)! Really?

Your stat is a bit misleading, because there were far more fouls than just personals, and not all fouls are converted to points or even trips to the line. The Hawks took 33 free-throws to our 18 ... that's almost twice as many, and a HUGE disparity. There were many reasons why we lost this game, but no matter how you look at it, the officiating sucked.

[jasail]

I'm not going to blame the ref's, i hate that.  but i will say games like this vindicate TD's claims about ref's being charged by the league to keep the game close. 

the veteran home team couldn't get a call to save their lives, while the young road team got every "save me" call. 

it's disgraceful and if TD is indeed right about where this type of officiating is generated from i think stern is quite foolhardy.  close games in january aren't going to excite the casual fan and make them a full time fan.  what it is going to do is anger the lifelong basketball fans enough to turn off the TV. 

at least when selig ruined baseball by turning a blind eye to steroids he put people in the seats. 

[connerhenry43]

I tend to blame the refs when:

1) there is a huge disparity in ft attempts
2) there are a number of missed calls in favor of one team
 a) there were some turnovers on atlanta that were "overlooked"

BUT the kicker is
3) when the refs feel the need to cover up their mistakes with bravado, handing out techs, and making themselves a part of the game

I have to say, I really can't trust that NBA officiating is fair and balanced when I watch Kobe or LeBron get kid gloves. Or when I watch games officiated differently depending on how much time is left on the clock.

I am bewildered when people use #1 as evidence of poor reffing. Based on recent studies, I consider equal foul calls as more suspect since refs are so prone to unconscious makeup calls.

There is no reason to expect anything near equal foul shot attempts. What makes point 1 particularly odd is that the disparity in fouls committed in last night's game was only 5 (21-16)! Really?

Your stat is a bit misleading, because there were far more fouls than just personals, and not all fouls are converted to points or even trips to the line. The Hawks took 33 free-throws to our 18 ... that's almost twice as many, and a HUGE disparity. There were many reasons why we lost this game, but no matter how you look at it, the officiating sucked.

#1 is a good example but i understand that ft attemots can be misleading. what ws not misleading is that i watched the game and know one sided officiating when i see it. and we saw it blatantly last night. as bad as it gets. well done, nba, once again.

[ToppersBsktball10]

Horrible calls

[reggie35]

I tend to blame the refs when:

1) there is a huge disparity in ft attempts
2) there are a number of missed calls in favor of one team
 a) there were some turnovers on atlanta that were "overlooked"

BUT the kicker is
3) when the refs feel the need to cover up their mistakes with bravado, handing out techs, and making themselves a part of the game

I have to say, I really can't trust that NBA officiating is fair and balanced when I watch Kobe or LeBron get kid gloves. Or when I watch games officiated differently depending on how much time is left on the clock.

I am bewildered when people use #1 as evidence of poor reffing. Based on recent studies, I consider equal foul calls as more suspect since refs are so prone to unconscious makeup calls.

There is no reason to expect anything near equal foul shot attempts. What makes point 1 particularly odd is that the disparity in fouls committed in last night's game was only 5 (21-16)! Really?

I didn't say #1 is sufficient to blame the refs, just that it, coupled with the other factors leads me to be suspicious of the officiating. Not only were the FTAs so disparate, but the distribution of fouls was also quite convenient for Atlanta, with none of their stars getting close to foul trouble.

A huge FT disparity such as last night means that the officials, rightly or not, had a big impact on the final outcome of the game. That is undeniable.

[Roy Hobbs]

A huge FT disparity such as last night means that the officials, rightly or not, had a big impact on the final outcome of the game. That is undeniable.

In the alternative, couldn't you also say that if the free throws were exactly even, but legitimate fouls were being committed (but not called), the refs would have a huge impact on a game?

I tend to agree with guava that looking at the raw number of free throw attempts, without analyzing each foul call, isn't all that helpful.  I remember that in the Finals, Lakers fans were complaining about our FT disparity, which was more of a reflection of how we were playing than it was any NBA officiating bias.  (For instance, we led 38 - 10 in FTs in Game 2.)

[reggie35]

A huge FT disparity such as last night means that the officials, rightly or not, had a big impact on the final outcome of the game. That is undeniable.

In the alternative, couldn't you also say that if the free throws were exactly even, but legitimate fouls were being committed (but not called), the refs would have a huge impact on a game?

I tend to agree with guava that looking at the raw number of free throw attempts, without analyzing each foul call, isn't all that helpful.  I remember that in the Finals, Lakers fans were complaining about our FT disparity, which was more of a reflection of how we were playing than it was any NBA officiating bias.  (For instance, we led 38 - 10 in FTs in Game 2.)

Clearly. FTs could be 10 to 8 going into the last possession of a tied game and the ref can blow it by calling a non-foul a foul (say for Lebron) giving each team 10 FTs each but deciding the game nonetheless.

BUT the disparity, coupled with other factors (especially #3), will always get my radar up and a disparity like the one in the Finals does have a huge impact in favor of the team shooting the FTs whether or not they are legitimate calls.

Compassionate as I am, I have a die hard Lakers fan for a friend. He STILL complains about that game two years and one title later. FT disparity will always get fans upset and does impact the game.

I wish there was someway to make officiating better in basketball. In college ball, the solution seems to be let them play, but I don't know what the right thing is for the NBA. All I know is that I rarely get the sense (as I do when I watch an NFL game for example) that the Refs are consistently getting it right.

[nickagneta]

Some of the non calls last night really got to me. The Rondo lay in after the Doc ejection for instance. There was a whistle, at least I thought there was, calling a foul and the next thing you know Atlanta is taking the ball out. There was all sorts of contact there.

There was another one where Rondo was tripped and the call was out of bounds Rondo. Then there was the won where Atlanta was taking it up the floor, Horford was looking towards his own basket and while simultaneously turning his body and running up floor, ran over Rondo knocking him to the floor. On moving picks being employed by both teams never got called though Atlanta seemed to use the knowledge of that non call more and more as the game went on. There are at least a half dozen more that I would need to rewatch the game to remember but the number of extremely clear fouls not to be called last night were significant.

[nickagneta]

Also, I think the refs got both Flagrant 1 fouls completely wrong. Neither the Pachulia nor the Davis fouls were Flagrant 1's. The refs were influenced by the screaming for one on Zaza but that was just a hard foul. Later, when Baby knocked the ball from Williams with his left hand and then went to block the ball with his right, it knocked Williams off balance and then Davis did what he could to hold him up. There again was no Flagrant 1 but since the first questionable call went Flagrant the second did as well.

The botched both calls. Neither were Flagrant.

[Overrated]

I was at the game last night and everyone was beyond disgusted. It was easily one of the most frustrating games I've been to, and I've had season tickets for a couple years.

The officiating was downright atrocious. The phantom flagrant call on Baby and the double technical on Doc was the turning point of the game. Blame who you want for the loss, but those calls changed the game. That swing completely favored the Hawks. All I could think was "How much do the refs have on this game?!"

[EJPLAYA]

Some of the non calls last night really got to me. The Rondo lay in after the Doc ejection for instance. There was a whistle, at least I thought there was, calling a foul and the next thing you know Atlanta is taking the ball out. There was all sorts of contact there.

There was another one where Rondo was tripped and the call was out of bounds Rondo. Then there was the won where Atlanta was taking it up the floor, Horford was looking towards his own basket and while simultaneously turning his body and running up floor, ran over Rondo knocking him to the floor. On moving picks being employed by both teams never got called though Atlanta seemed to use the knowledge of that non call more and more as the game went on. There are at least a half dozen more that I would need to rewatch the game to remember but the number of extremely clear fouls not to be called last night were significant.

Nick, I went back and watched the Rondo layup play you mentioned and he was actually calling a goaltend, not a foul. (not that one shouldn't have been called possibly) The ref was looking up the whole time at the ball and it hit the backboard, the Hawks player then touched the ball before it went in. As soon as he saw the ball get touched he made that motion that the basket counted. I thought the same thing until I replayed it and then saw that he never was calling a foul.

Other than that, you're dead on. HORRIBLE officiating. Ever since we won the championship in 08 we have gotten the shaft with calls. It is almost like they feel sorry for the other team so they let things go for them and are stricter for us. What do you expect when the worst ref in the game is calling it?!

[looseball]

Basketball, like most sports, is a game of momentum, and the momentum shifts back and forth during the course of the game.  The winner is generally the team that can keep it going, when the have it, for the longer periods of time.

The refs can (and do)cause the momentum to shift from one team to the other by a series of calls, or non-calls, etc. 

When this happens to you and you lose your momentum, you have to take steps to gain it back, and this is where coaching and leadership comes into play the most.

Part of good coaching is knowing how to deal with the refs so their negative impact on your team will be minimal.  Phil Jackson often makes statements in the media alluding to unfair treatment of his team; but during the game he rarely complains, just glares when he's upset.  Doc, on the other hand, complains constantly during the course of a game.  I think this gets on the  bad refs nerves and they look forward to nailing him with a T, while the good ones just tune him out altogether.  Either response is not beneficial to his team.  (And it sets the example for his players to complain, also.)

[Bahku]

While Doc does consistently complain, like most coaches, last night was a travesty of no-calls, bad calls, and complete control of the tempo and balance of the game by the officials. Yes, we all love to put blame on people other than our beloved team, but last night was undoubtedly one of the games where such blame is completely justified.

The amazing thing to me is that despite the refs and the many turnovers and missing Quis and KG and Thibs' lack of rotations, etc ... we STILL had a good chance to win this game. I'm now going to watch the noon replay ... I always get different impressions the second time around.

[FLCeltsFan]

The strange thing is that if you read through the Hawks boards, they felt that the game was being called one sided toward FOR the Celtics.  They complained the whole game about getting no calls. http://celticsgreen.blogspot.com/2010/01/comments-from-other-side-hawks-111.html 

It's just funny to hear both sides saying that they aren't getting any calls.  There were bad calls and no calls on both sides.  I can think of one where Big Baby slammed into the back of Horford causing him to lose his handle on the ball.  The refs gave possession to the Celtics and didn't call the foul, leaving Horford to look around for the bus that hit him. 

But, the stats at the end showing the free throw disparity in favor of the Hawks would lean toward the fact that the Celtics fans have more of a case than the Hawks fans that the calls were more one sided in favor of the Hawks than for the Celtics.

The refs influenced the game by changing the momentum with those T's on Doc and Hill.  The Celtics had an 11 point lead and momentum.  The Hawks got 5 free throws and possession.  That shifted momentum.  Most importantly, the head coach was gone and that affected the game more than anything. 

Thibs opted to keep the starters in the entire second half.  Doc was tossed at the point where he usually gives the starters some rest. When he got tossed, I'm sure Thibs wanted to leave the starters in to try to get some momentum back and when they never did, he never made the substitutions. Scal had also been more effective against Smith than Baby was but they went with Baby the rest of the game as well. 

In the 4th quarter, we had players in there at the end who had played 40+ minutes the night before (back to back, remember?) and had played the entire second half with no rest and they just didn't have legs under their jumpers and simply ran out of gas.

I honestly cringe every time I see Bennett Salvatore as one of the refs.  He has a history of making horrible calls at very crucial times.  He let his ego get in the way in this one and called two very quick T's on Doc and another on Hill that changed this game.  From there on, it was miscues by the asst. coaches and fatigue in the players.  Just my thoughts on this. 

[nickagneta]

The strange thing is that if you read through the Hawks boards, they felt that the game was being called one sided toward FOR the Celtics.  They complained the whole game about getting no calls. http://celticsgreen.blogspot.com/2010/01/comments-from-other-side-hawks-111.html 

It's just funny to hear both sides saying that they aren't getting any calls.  There were bad calls and no calls on both sides.  I can think of one where Big Baby slammed into the back of Horford causing him to lose his handle on the ball.  The refs gave possession to the Celtics and didn't call the foul, leaving Horford to look around for the bus that hit him. 

But, the stats at the end showing the free throw disparity in favor of the Hawks would lean toward the fact that the Celtics fans have more of a case than the Hawks fans that the calls were more one sided in favor of the Hawks than for the Celtics.

The refs influenced the game by changing the momentum with those T's on Doc and Hill.  The Celtics had an 11 point lead and momentum.  The Hawks got 5 free throws and possession.  That shifted momentum.  Most importantly, the head coach was gone and that affected the game more than anything. 

Thibs opted to keep the starters in the entire second half.  Doc was tossed at the point where he usually gives the starters some rest. When he got tossed, I'm sure Thibs wanted to leave the starters in to try to get some momentum back and when they never did, he never made the substitutions. Scal had also been more effective against Smith than Baby was but they went with Baby the rest of the game as well. 

In the 4th quarter, we had players in there at the end who had played 40+ minutes the night before (back to back, remember?) and had played the entire second half with no rest and they just didn't have legs under their jumpers and simply ran out of gas.

I honestly cringe every time I see Bennett Salvatore as one of the refs.  He has a history of making horrible calls at very crucial times.  He let his ego get in the way in this one and called two very quick T's on Doc and another on Hill that changed this game.  From there on, it was miscues by the asst. coaches and fatigue in the players.  Just my thoughts on this. 

TP FL, pretty much the way I looked at it.