Letter to the editor re: NBA officiating article and my response
 

This letter to the editor appeared in today's Oregonian newspaper:

Letter: Incompetence in sports officiating is rampant
by The Oregonian
Sunday June 07, 2009, 6:00 AM

As usual, Rachel Bachman focused on an important issue in her story on the study of NBA officiating (Study calls foul on NBA officials, June 4).

The study itself provides little beyond the obvious point that home teams get some more favorable calls. Needed are studies of concrete examples of important calls that have affected the outcome of games, series, and championships. Few TV announcers and analysts dare question the competence or honesty of officials lest they offend executives and administrators who control their jobs. An occasional columnist like Bill Simmons sometimes mentions incompetence.

I have long maintained that game officials "manipulate" the results of games in various ways -- phantom tags in MLB, ignoring fouls by star players and calling the slightest brush by a rookie or lesser light in the NBA, or by "homer" replay officials in college football.

There does not have to be a "conspiracy" with a commissioner directly telling officials to affect the outcome. Referees in the NBA know the league loves match-ups of star players. Therefore stars almost never foul out. They also can see which teams have higher TV audiences. At the college level, officials know their conference benefits from having more teams in bowl and tournament games. Lower ranked teams almost never have a chance to win late season basketball or football games. Officials who "play the game" can have long careers, many well past their point of competence -- if they ever had one.

In my opinion, at all levels of sports officiating incompetence is rampant -- corruption most likely.

Joe F. Decker
Florence

Here is the letter I sent the paper in response. We'll see if they print it:

Joe Decker, in his letter that appeared in your Sunday sports section, made some very damning accusations aimed at all sports officials. He uses an NBA study (which already has been dismissed by the international officiating community for gross errors in logic) to conclude "...at all levels of sports officiating incompetence is rampant - corruption most likely". This statement is ludicrous.

I have been a basketball official for over 20 years and one of my volunteer activities is to train high school students and other young people to referee kids recreational basketball. The first thing they learn is that there are only two people in the entire gym who don't care who wins the game - themselves and their officiating partner. Does Mr. Decker (who, I'm sure, has never officiated any sport) really think rec leagues and high school game winners are decided ahead of time by the officials? That's just plain nuts. He also states, while referencing college conference games, that "Lower ranked teams almost never have a chance to win late-season basketball or football games." Maybe - just maybe - that's because those teams are not as good as the higher ranked teams and the higher ranked teams have more motivation - the playoffs. That's why whenever the lower ranked team actually does win, it's called an "upset". DUH!

I'd like to put some stripes on Mr. Decker and have him officiate a game. He'd then realize how difficult it really is and how important it is to maintain ones objectivity. Or then again, maybe not.


Mark Padgett
Tigard

Go get em Mark!

Seconded!

Got an email from the asst. sports editor at the paper asking permission to run my letter. I said OK. It will probably appear later this week. Although they have a daily letters page, they have a special column in the sports section twice a week to run sports related letters.

If it appears, I'll post a link. We'll see if they edited it. Hope not.

My guess is that Mr. Decker buys into all sorts of conspiracy theories.

Padgett's going to be published.

*braces for armageddon*

If they edit it are you going to "T em" and "Toss em" as only you can? :p

Actually, I get "published" every once in a while, which shows you how small a town Portland really is. :rolleyes:

Seriously, I know quite a few reporters, both print and electronic, as I've been involved in civic, youth sports, school and political activities in this area for over 35 years. It's not that unusual for me to receive a call asking my "take" on a particular issue, usually for "background".

I'm not stating this to be bragging, only to say that if you take the time to get involved, people then take your opinions into consideration when reviewing issues and you gain credibility.

Two years ago, I asked a reporter friend of mine to run a story on the need for volunteers for our local kids rec league. He ran it, and ten parents showed up at our next meeting to volunteer. It was a big help. I also got three TV stations and all three local newspapers to cover a fund raiser for a local G.I. who is stationed in Iraq. They covered it not only because of the story value, but because they knew I had credibility and the event was legitimate.

Again, anyone can achieve this level of credibility if they get involved in their community. I would encourage all of you to do the same.

OK, I'll get down off my soapbox now. :)

I have a family member I can hook you up with for some , ahem, tales. :rolleyes:

The theorys get better after about 5 beers. :)

Yeah, I've heard some of those tales from colleagues in my Guard unit. It's like listening to Art Bell.

I spent many a night driving from Norcal to Vegas and back. I would always listen to Coast to Coast.

I,at one time, owned land in the kingdom of Nye. :D

Worked graveyard shift for a security company for a short time in 97. Art got me through the nights.

Agreed. I have a good relationship with several writers at our local newspaper. They routinely do articles on officiating and local officials. The HS Preps sportwriter contacts me at the end of football and basketball season when putting together the paper's all-region teams and asks about deserving players that I may have seen that he's not familiar with. He'll call me with rule questions whenever he comes across something unusual. But he would never put me in a controversial situation by quoting me about an officiating screwup or something like that or publish anything I might say. It's been very positive.

Sports writers are alot like officials. They don't get a lot of cooperation from coaches. You'd be amazed at the coaches who don't send in stats or game reports or who don't nominate their kids for recognition.

You've got that absolutely right. Have several close family members who have been sports writers. They're only doing a good job when they're writing something good about the reader's team. Sound familiar? And while they're not running up and down the court in front of a several hundred or thousand fans, they're still working a game, trying to stay somewhat separated from fans, and a lot of their real work starts only after the final horn and everybody else gets to go home.

You have to know who you're talking with, and how trustworthy they are (broadcasters can be some of the worst with their smash-and-grab process), but these (re: BBRef and Mark's posts) are some good reasons why officials should not outright shun members of the media.

I always have a good understanding of where broadcasters are coming from since I used to be one. In the late 60s and early 70s I did radio play-by-play for local HS and college basketball plus HS football and baseball at a suburban Chicago station (WKKD in Aurora, now WERV). What's weird is that a rival station in town also did HS basketball and their announcer was Chick Hearn, who became the L.A. Lakers long-time announcer. He was really good even back then.

Hey - they printed my letter today! They didn't edit it at all and they gave it a title - "Put on a whistle". It was one of only two letters printed in the sports section on a Sunday. I hope it convinces some people that officials try their best to call a fair game - always.

Does the paper have an online version anywhere so we can read any replies to it?

If there are any, they would be in next Sunday's paper. I will check and provide a link if possible.

Hey Padgett....
 

I may get published too……but, it may not be what you think.

July 2009, REFEREE Magazine, page 21, Respect, Please. The magazine makes a big “ta do” about paying respects to our Nation’s flag, which I am all for of course, but then provides the wrong guidance (shocker).

The article states, “The umpires should stand at attention, with their left hand by their side and their right hand holding their hat over their heart (see PlayPic).”

While this is what most people believe to be correct (Mythbuster Billy?) and do, it is incorrect.

The correct verbiage should be something like, “Men who are wearing a hat should remove it and with their right hand hold the hat over their shoulder. The right HAND, not the hat, should rest over the heart. Placing the right hand on the left side of the breast, covering the heart, shows our love for the Flag and all it stands for.”

Same should be said for officials of any kind.

(Note - I don’t truly know if there is a distinction for women, but everything I’ve seen talks specifically about men removing headgear. Sorry.)

As Billy Joel once wrote:

Get it right the first time
That's the main thing
I can't afford to let it pass
Get it right the next time
That's not the same thing
Gonna make the first time last.

Once you tell/show people bad habits, it's hard to undo em.

Just a pet peeve.
Off soapbox, carry on!

Mythbusters Are On The Case ...
 

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3633/...bbd4047b_m.jpg

UNITED STATES CODE
TITLE 36
CHAPTER 10
SECTION 171 During rendition of the national anthem when the flag is displayed, all present except those in uniform should stand at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. Men not in uniform should remove their headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart. Persons in uniform should render the military salute at the first note of the anthem and retain this position until the last note. When the flag is not displayed, those present should face toward the music and act in the same manner they would if the flag were displayed there.

Now, my pet peeve:

UNITED STATES CODE
TITLE 36
CHAPTER 10
Section 176. (j) No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations. The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. Therefore, the lapel flag pin being a replica, should be worn on the left lapel near the heart.

I love our flag as much as anyone. I display the flag on all holidays. The wallpaper on my work computer, home computer, and cell phone, is a flag. I'm proud to wear a flag patch on my official's uniform, but are officials considered a patriotic organization?

As usual, I think it depends on whom you ask. My answer to the question is 'no,' which is why I haven't and won't put a patch on my uniform. This refusal rankles some, but I fail to see why it makes more sense for sports officials to wear flag patches than it would for members of catering staffs. After all, they usually wear unis, too.

No they are not. Here is a list of patriotic organizations. I am sure there are more organizations which are not on the list but you can read the descriptions of the organizations and see that sports officials/officials' associations do not belong with the other groups.

Patriotic Organizations, American organizations and clubs, public service.

Sports officiating and flags really don't go together at all. If someone is patriotic why does that need to be shown to all while they are officiating a game?

The Sunday paper came out today and there were no responses to my letter from last Sunday. I guess everyone agreed with what I said. Yeah, right. :p

Even the guy who wrote the 1st letter? Great job!

I would have rolled on the floor in hysterical laughter if Padgett would have written a response to his own letter. That would so be him! :D

Fyi... Veterans out of uniform now allowed to salute.
 

New Law Authorizes Veterans? Salutes during National Anthem - Public and Intergovernmental Affairs

:confused:And argued for the other side? :confused:

Actually, I had one composed but I didn't mail it. Here it is:

Dear Editor,

I read with disgust Mark Padgett's letter stating there is no cheating by basketball officials at lower levels. I know for a fact that Mr. Padgett shaved points in a 3rd grade girls game and made one-sided calls during the entire game. I know this because I'm his bookie and he bet $1000 on one of the teams. He made sure that team won and the final score was 156-3. By the way, I also take bets on croquet matches, so if you want to bet, you can find me before games sitting at table seven at the Hooters in Beaverton. I'm the guy with the $50 bill stuck between his teeth.

Yours in crime,
Skippy Weaselpants


Do you think that if I sent it they would print it? :confused:

Hey, when Padgett is off his meds, he's capable of doing so! :D

Take your meds buddy, just take your meds. :D