Tim Donaghy critiques the officiating in the NBA finals

[Jurassic Referee]

The problem is that none of us really knows what a "missed call" in the NBA system actually is. Every call the officials make is graded. But if the grading system is completely subjective on the part of the grader, how do we know what the NBA considers as a "missed call"?

A call might be completely wrong in our eyes, but it may still be perfectly OK in the eyes of the NBA evaluators.

And as jeffpea said, officials are human and will miss calls.

You can't forget that Donaghy also graded out as being one of their staff's more accurate play callers, even in the period that he was supplying info to gamblers. The info that he was supplied was on on officials' calling tendencies, likes/dislikes and injuries he might have heard about. I don't think that he was ever accused of trying to blow calls to affect the outcome of a game. That's the scary part.

As I've said numerous times before, imo the NBA micro-manages their officals as to how the league wants their games called. And if the officials are getting good grades from the league in a game while following the league's direction, you can't blame the officials for supposedly crappy officiating in the same game. The guys are just providing what their bosses want. And they really don't have a choice. Their jobs depend on their evaluations.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by Jurassic Referee

As I've said numerous times before, imo the NBA micro-manages their officals as to how the league wants their games called. And if the officials are getting good grades from the league in a game while following the league's direction, you can't blame the officials for supposedly crappy officiating in the same game. The guys are just providing what their bosses want. And they really don't have a choice. Their jobs depend on their evaluations.

I completely agree, but that is the case at most pro leagues. The NBA is no different; it is just harder IMO to be an NBA (basketball) official because we have so many more decisions to make. A baseball umpire in many cases is not ruling on anything during a play. And everyone gets upset over things that happen in basketball games they do not get upset over in things like an NFL game. But all those leagues have standards that those officials must adhere to. I belong to an association that has three current NFL officials and they talk a lot about what they are expected to do as well. But an NFL official might only have 160 to 200 plays total to rule on. A basketball official does that in a quarter. And even in Tim's critique were a lot of plays that other sports might not even have to be evaluated on.

Peace

[APG]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

The NBA is no different; it is just harder IMO to be an NBA (basketball) official because we have so many more decisions to make. A baseball umpire in many cases is not ruling on anything during a play. And everyone gets upset over things that happen in basketball games they do not get upset over in things like an NFL game.

I agree with this portion 100%. I also think what helps the perception of football officials is their ability to use a mic. Football has many rules and then many exceptions to the rules. The average fan has an idea what pass interference is. The also usually know that is doesn't apply to uncatchable passes or if the defender is playing the ball (looking back for the ball, etc.). They know this because the referee will announce to everyone why a foul wasn't called. Also, everyone sees the signal and hears the announcement of said call from the official.

Contrast that with a bunch of misconceptions heard all the time at any basketball game...

"That's over the back!"
"He's reaching!"
"How was that a charge?! He was moving!"

etc.

And even though we also give a signal to indicate the type of foul, no one except maybe the coach pays attention to that. Fans see the official with a fist up and blow the whistle, disagree with the call when they may have no idea what specifically the official called the infraction for.

[bradfordwilkins]

Originally Posted by AllPurposeGamer

And even though we also give a signal to indicate the type of foul, no one except maybe the coach pays attention to that. Fans see the official with a fist up and blow the whistle, disagree with the call when they may have no idea what specifically the official called the infraction for.

One of my favorite things about the pro-am game is the ability to illustrate what foul occurred more accurately than the limited options in the back of the book. Saves a lot of time with coaches and players explaining what happened.

[APG]

Originally Posted by bradfordwilkins

One of my favorite things about the pro-am game is the ability to illustrate what foul occurred more accurately than the limited options in the back of the book. Saves a lot of time with coaches and players explaining what happened.

I love that too. It's probably why I'm not 100% by the book when it comes to signaling haha

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally Posted by bradfordwilkins

One of my favorite things about the pro-am game is the ability to illustrate what foul occurred more accurately than the limited options in the back of the book. Saves a lot of time with coaches and players explaining what happened.

Pro-am is basically rec league basketball. We usually do a few other things differently also in rec leagues than in the more structured games.

Slavish adherence to mechanics in rec league games is usually based on the personal philosophy of the person assigning them in my experience. And imo, reporting by the book ain't a biggie in rec basketball.

JMO.