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There are a number of "unwritten" rules of refereeing that never are discussed publicly, only in forums like these. This is not out of a desire to keep things secret. It merely relfects that you can only have these kind of discussions among a group of people who understand the whole context in which these rules exist and why they do 9most of the general population doesn't know anything other than you can call three seconds during rebounds!)
As you get to the higher levels Eli, I am sure that the expectations that you follow certain unwritten rules grows exponentially (in general -obviously there are specific situations that you need to deal with that unwritten rules may not adequately address). Because there is higher scrutiny, constant review and supervision, and higher levels of play, the unwritten rules that people follow are also probably greater.
So if there is an unwritten rule in the NBA that you have to have a solid foul to call it on a star, it would not surprise me in the least. The NBA is in the business of spending and making huge amounts of money. It would also not strike me as some sort of major conspiracy worthy of a 60 Minutes expose. The stars have earned what they get, and did not become stars because of some favored status they had before reaching the NBA.
I personally believe that officials are going to be more cautious about fouling out the star that everyone came to see rather (MJ) than fouling out Tyronne Lue. So make of that what you will, but it doesn't mean you ignore fouls, it means you are careful only to call fouls that clearly need to be called. Stars get a little more incidental contact. And stars that play rough in general have been known to foul out. It is only those stars that in general don't foul that will get the benefit of the doubt.
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