NBA=WWE ....Again

[MBunge]

In fairness, it's not just LeBron.  I believe we've now seen the same exact horrible play where someone is clearly fouled at the end of a playoff game and the refs simply refuse to call it.  It's not like any of them were hard calls.  The refs just went into the plays with their minds made up that they weren't going to call a foul.

Mike

[LarBrd33]

Well if the game is fixed, at least they fixed 2008 for us.  Really nice of the NBA to force Minny to trade us a superstar... really nice for them to set up an exciting Lakers/Celtics finals... really nice for them to throw us a bone.  Otherwise, we'd probably be nearing year 30 of complete irrelevance. 

Here's hoping they fix this draft for us.  It's in the league's best interest to have a relevant team in Boston.

[Ogaju]

I remember the old Pat Riley Lakers stagger defense that allowed them to mount comebacks from huge deficits. They may have just as well called it the hacking defense because that is what it was. When they went to that defense and the referees swallowed their whistles the Lakers forced turnover after turnover.

The NBA has always been the WWE.

[Celtics18]

When I saw that play live on my TV, it definitely looked like Lebron got ball on the Pierce strip.  On the replay, it looked like a foul, but it was a close play.

I was very disappointed in the way that game turned out, but calling it a "fix" just reads like sour grapes to me. 

[CelticG1]

Huh??? These refs arent refereeing from their living room tv. They are 5 feet away from the play and it was about as obvious a foul as there can be. 100 times out of 100 thats a foul. Theres no interpretation. Theres a reason you arent making that call from 5 feet away.

NBA is just embarrasing. Imagine trying to introduce someone to the NBA and having them watch the end of the last 2 games. Nevermind that the last 2 minutes of the game takes a half hour to finish anyway

[Celtics18]

Huh??? These refs arent refereeing from their living room tv. They are 5 feet away from the play and it was about as obvious a foul as there can be. 100 times out of 100 thats a foul. Theres no interpretation. Theres a reason you arent making that call from 5 feet away.

NBA is just embarrasing. Imagine trying to introduce someone to the NBA and having them watch the end of the last 2 games. Nevermind that the last 2 minutes of the game takes a half hour to finish anyway

I've seen many, many more obvious fouls than that one that were missed.  It's the nature of basketball.  The good teams play through and find ways to win. 

[Celtics18]

The "Hand is Part of the Ball Rule."

"The hand is considered part of the ball when it is in contact with the ball. It is not a foul if a defensive player makes normal contact with a players hand when it is in contact with the ball."  From NBA.Com's Commonly Misunderstood Rules.

I think that's one of the toughest rules in basketball to interpret in the run of play.  It always has been, even when you are just playing pick up basketball. 

So, sure, I think Paul should have gotten the call on that play last night, but it is far from one of the most grievous missed calls I've seen in a basketball game.  It was, in fact, fairly debatable. 

[MBunge]

Huh??? These refs arent refereeing from their living room tv. They are 5 feet away from the play and it was about as obvious a foul as there can be. 100 times out of 100 thats a foul. Theres no interpretation. Theres a reason you arent making that call from 5 feet away.

NBA is just embarrasing. Imagine trying to introduce someone to the NBA and having them watch the end of the last 2 games. Nevermind that the last 2 minutes of the game takes a half hour to finish anyway

I've seen many, many more obvious fouls than that one that were missed.  It's the nature of basketball.  The good teams play through and find ways to win.

How do you "play through" when instead of getting two free throws to potentially tie the game with less than 10 seconds left, the ball either is given to the other team (like the Clippers/Golden State game) or you get the ball out of bounds and the refs allow your player to get fouled AGAIN (like what happened with the Heat/Nets when LeBron banged into Johnson)?

Is the NBA fixed?  No.  But there is an arbitrary element to NBA officiating culture that says fouls will be called on certain players and not others and fouls will be called in certain situations and not others.

Mike

[MBunge]

The "Hand is Part of the Ball Rule."

"The hand is considered part of the ball when it is in contact with the ball. It is not a foul if a defensive player makes normal contact with a players hand when it is in contact with the ball."  From NBA.Com's Commonly Misunderstood Rules.

I think that's one of the toughest rules in basketball to interpret in the run of play.  It always has been, even when you are just playing pick up basketball. 

So, sure, I think Paul should have gotten the call on that play last night, but it is far from one of the most grievous missed calls I've seen in a basketball game.  It was, in fact, fairly debatable.

The wrist is not part of the hand.

Mike

[Celtics18]

Huh??? These refs arent refereeing from their living room tv. They are 5 feet away from the play and it was about as obvious a foul as there can be. 100 times out of 100 thats a foul. Theres no interpretation. Theres a reason you arent making that call from 5 feet away.

NBA is just embarrasing. Imagine trying to introduce someone to the NBA and having them watch the end of the last 2 games. Nevermind that the last 2 minutes of the game takes a half hour to finish anyway

I've seen many, many more obvious fouls than that one that were missed.  It's the nature of basketball.  The good teams play through and find ways to win.

How do you "play through" when instead of getting two free throws to potentially tie the game with less than 10 seconds left, the ball either is given to the other team (like the Clippers/Golden State game) or you get the ball out of bounds and the refs allow your player to get fouled AGAIN (like what happened with the Heat/Nets when LeBron banged into Johnson)?

Is the NBA fixed?  No.  But there is an arbitrary element to NBA officiating culture that says fouls will be called on certain players and not others and fouls will be called in certain situations and not others.

Mike

If you think Johnson got fouled on that very last play, then I think it's clear that your judgment is simply clouded by who you wanted to win the game. 

[Celtics18]

The "Hand is Part of the Ball Rule."

"The hand is considered part of the ball when it is in contact with the ball. It is not a foul if a defensive player makes normal contact with a players hand when it is in contact with the ball."  From NBA.Com's Commonly Misunderstood Rules.

I think that's one of the toughest rules in basketball to interpret in the run of play.  It always has been, even when you are just playing pick up basketball. 

So, sure, I think Paul should have gotten the call on that play last night, but it is far from one of the most grievous missed calls I've seen in a basketball game.  It was, in fact, fairly debatable.

The wrist is not part of the hand.

Mike

Like I said, "debatable," but not "grievous."

[MBunge]

Huh??? These refs arent refereeing from their living room tv. They are 5 feet away from the play and it was about as obvious a foul as there can be. 100 times out of 100 thats a foul. Theres no interpretation. Theres a reason you arent making that call from 5 feet away.

NBA is just embarrasing. Imagine trying to introduce someone to the NBA and having them watch the end of the last 2 games. Nevermind that the last 2 minutes of the game takes a half hour to finish anyway

I've seen many, many more obvious fouls than that one that were missed.  It's the nature of basketball.  The good teams play through and find ways to win.

How do you "play through" when instead of getting two free throws to potentially tie the game with less than 10 seconds left, the ball either is given to the other team (like the Clippers/Golden State game) or you get the ball out of bounds and the refs allow your player to get fouled AGAIN (like what happened with the Heat/Nets when LeBron banged into Johnson)?

Is the NBA fixed?  No.  But there is an arbitrary element to NBA officiating culture that says fouls will be called on certain players and not others and fouls will be called in certain situations and not others.

Mike

If you think Johnson got fouled on that very last play, then I think it's clear that your judgment is simply clouded by who you wanted to win the game.

Johnson did get fouled on the play.  That's a foul that gets called almost every single time during the regular season and in the 1st 3 quarters of the playoffs.  It also often gets called in the 4th quarter of the playoffs when it's a superstar getting banged that hard as he's trying to make an offensive move.   But sometimes it also doesn't get called, even when it happens to a superstar.

Mike

[MBunge]

The "Hand is Part of the Ball Rule."

"The hand is considered part of the ball when it is in contact with the ball. It is not a foul if a defensive player makes normal contact with a players hand when it is in contact with the ball."  From NBA.Com's Commonly Misunderstood Rules.

I think that's one of the toughest rules in basketball to interpret in the run of play.  It always has been, even when you are just playing pick up basketball. 

So, sure, I think Paul should have gotten the call on that play last night, but it is far from one of the most grievous missed calls I've seen in a basketball game.  It was, in fact, fairly debatable.

The wrist is not part of the hand.

Mike

Like I said, "debatable," but not "grievous."

Where in the rulebook does it say only "grievous" fouls shall be called in certain situations?

Mike

[D.o.s.]

Can't depend on the referees to bail you out.

Brooklyn spent the last 5 minutes of the game basically refusing to score points. That's significantly more important to the final score than the Pierce foul from LeBron.

[Celtics18]

The "Hand is Part of the Ball Rule."

"The hand is considered part of the ball when it is in contact with the ball. It is not a foul if a defensive player makes normal contact with a players hand when it is in contact with the ball."  From NBA.Com's Commonly Misunderstood Rules.

I think that's one of the toughest rules in basketball to interpret in the run of play.  It always has been, even when you are just playing pick up basketball. 

So, sure, I think Paul should have gotten the call on that play last night, but it is far from one of the most grievous missed calls I've seen in a basketball game.  It was, in fact, fairly debatable.

The wrist is not part of the hand.

Mike

Like I said, "debatable," but not "grievous."

Where in the rulebook does it say only "grievous" fouls shall be called in certain situations?

Mike

It doesn't.  And, I think the refs missed that call.  When I looked at it again, it looked like Lebron got more wrist than hand.  All I'm saying is that it was a really, really close call.  They may have missed it, but it's not evidence that something is amiss with the way games are officiated in my opinion.

Look, I really wanted the Nets to win that game, too.  They had their chances, but they couldn't pull it off.  Partly, I thought this was due to their own ineptitude, but I also am forced to give the Heat some credit.  They cranked up the D down the stretch and made it difficult for the Nets to get good looks.

Yes, the refs were a factor, but I thought they were far from the biggest factor.  The play of both teams involved decided that game.