NBA excerps from a book they don't want you to read
 

From the book, "Blowing the whistle", by Tim Donaghy

Excerpts From The Book The NBA Doesn't Want You To Read - Tim Donaghy - Deadspin

Some good reading. :)

Tim Donaghy's excerpts are about one-onemillionth as interesting as the one's in Earl Strom's book, "Calling The Shots".

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi.../Earlstrom.jpg

Wow! Somebody please tell me this is all a bunch of made up BS. :eek:

Great. Not only is this offensive beyond belief, but now everyone has the idea that this is the pinnacle of refereeing. Just what zebras need.

I was thinking the same thing. Wow. :mad:

NBA response:
NBA: Any Tim Donaghy allegations will be reviewed - ESPN

Oh good. I feel better now that I know the fox will investigate the carnage at the hen house. Kind of like the mayor of Stockton, UT conducting an investigation into whether the mayor of Stockton, UT acted improperly when he suspended a police officer for giving the mayor's son a traffic citation.

<s>Credibility</s>

I can't decide whether that excerpt is a horrifying indictment of this profession or proof positive of the theory that the NBA more closely resembles the WWE than basketball...or maybe both. Regardless, I find it sickening.

I don't have a lot of faith in the NBA either, but I can hardly believe that Donaghy is really just "telling it like it is". I suspect that he's either exaggerating or downright fabricating a lot of that stuff. I have no evidence either way, but I simply can't imagine that he's really representing the overall culture of the NBA ref. I'd love to hear what Violet Palmer has to say about it...

I'm curious, why V?

I'll have to look for it, but I read something on ESPN.com that the NBA and the referees' union have agreed as part of the new CBA that officials will not be allowed to give monetary or other compensation as a tip to team personnel for being their gophers.

Found it. Check it out:

Referees no longer allowed to tip locker room attendants - ESPN

In all the interviews she did when she first started, she struck me as a very down-to-earth person, with a pretty good perspective on life and on reffing. I can't imagine she'd put up with the kind of stuff Donaghy describes. He makes it sound like all the refs have that attitude, but I'm just not convinced. I guess Violet is one person who I've heard talking about themself, where most of the other refs I've never paid attention. From what I've seen, I'd trust her take on this book and on Donaghy.

Perception, And The Appearance Of A Conflict Of Interest ...
 

In the Catholic middle school league that I work, we have an agreement with the schools. They will not ask us to purchase tickets for the 50%-50% raffle, and we are not allowed to purchase tickets for the 50%-50% raffle. Imagine if the home team were down thirty points at halftime, and during the halftime intermission they announced that BillyMac was the winner of the 50%-50% raffle, handed me a big wad of cash, and then the home team made an amazing comeback and won the game by two points. It's all about perception, and the appearance of a conflict of interest. Of course, we still get free food from most refreshmant stands. Best fried dough in the world. To die for.

This reminds me of a true story about my exwife's Catholic parish, where they had a carnival every summer to raise money for the church. Every year they would raffle off a Cadillac, which was the epitome of luxury cars back then. One summer, the pastor, as he usually did, pulled the winning ticket out of the drum, but this time he called his own name as the winner. He had the winning ticket for the Cadillac. What are the chances of that happening? Sometimes they didn't even pull the name of a parishioner, instead someone from out of town who was visiting the carnival. Well the pastor wanted to throw out his ticket, and pick another winner for the Cadillac, but a policeman warned him that the law required him to keep the car, which he did. True story. Really.

I distinctly recall the talking heads mentioning some of the same things in the article.

When TD mentioned "a company man", I immediately thought of Bavetta. 20+ years of watching the NBA and patterns emerge.

Much of that article isn't surprising to me.