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Politics are a way of life and they are in basketball - it is as simple as that.
Having said that, I don't know if those who have excelled because of politics would really be considered top officials. So much can go into being recognized as a top-notch official; it is a hard question to ask. However, for me it has nothing to do with how many games you do on TV or how far you go in the playoffs because top-notch officials are passed over all the time. I know one official who is still working in D1 tournaments now and he is average. I know another guy who is in a couple of D1 conferences and he is not very good - he is a good golfer and talks a good game though.
This is why I don't believe making it to D1 is a true indication of how good someone is. There are guys that get hired at the D1 level and they are basically hid on crews for many years. By the time they are given better games, they can stand on their own two feet. I'm not saying this always happens, but I have seen it many times.
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"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are." -- John Wooden
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