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We all have mentors and offficials we look up to as we grow and develop, and we attach a great bond to that relationship.
I don't think anyone on this board would belittle or downplay any other officials impact to the game, but it needs to be placed in context. It sounds like she was a pioneer (how many women coach boys Varsity?), but I hope you don't over state her contributions to the NBA game because you know her. Did her lawsuit push the NBA along? Maybe, but that is a reach. Dee and Violet earned their shot.
Trust me, politics were probably invovled, but the NBA is a business. If they could not keep up, they would not have been there in the first place. We should pat them on the back for getting there on their skills, not based on an unrelated lawsuit filed years before they started.
The cold, hard facts may be that this Sandy, just was not good enough for the NBA. I know there are something like 8000 Basketball officals here in OH. Multiplied by 50, would be 400000 officials across the country. That does not include all of the NCAA guys who are not carded in any states. If there are only 59 NBA refs... you do the math, the number is too small. You have a better chance making it as a player. Only the elite of the elite get their NBA stipes, I think you need to separate fact from emotion in this case.
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