Report:FBI Probing A NBA Ref For Fixing Games

[Andrew]

Obviously Donaghy should be punished for his crimes and it's terrible that the credibility of the league and integrity of the game has been compromised like this but I don't think it pays to dwell on what might have been in terms of the eventual outcome of the games.

As I said before, had Donaghy's calls (or non-calls) not led to overtime in that Bulls/Warriors game, the Bulls might have finished with 50 wins, the tiebreaker and the second seed which could have proved to be advantageous in their 2007 Playoff run but what's done is done. There were other games they lost due to their own shortcomings that could have been win number 50. Truth be told they could have had close to 55 wins if not for a few squandered games. I'd expect Suns fans to feel a bit differently though since there was more than a couple of calls and resulting decisions in that series that proved to be controversial.

[McDwyane]

Yes he should be punished.He caused many games' fortune to be different.

[Dro]

The ultimate redemption as a Suns fan. Send the man who screwed you over to jail! It's as satisfying as I ever imagined, and then some...even if he isn't convicted. Just the fact that an NBA referee is facing charges for fixing a specific game is enough for me to relish in the Spurs' tainted NBA championship. Shame that there aren't any die-hard Spurs fans on here for me to argue with.

[el badman]

Just the fact that an NBA referee is facing charges for fixing a specific game is enough for me to relish in the Spurs' tainted NBA championship.

Not really, in the end I don't think anyone could question the Spurs supremacy this past season and especially in the playoffs. No need to argue on that.

[Sauru]

i will argue it, suns win that game the entire series is changed and they are in the drivers seat. i could over look 1 or 2 questionable calls but the suns were getting fucked at every turn. it was the worst series i have ever seen in my life. its no wonder people (by people i mean the older people who ditched the nba) no longer give a shit about the nba. the nfl has a couple seasons where the fans complain about bad calls, they go and fix the situation. i understand you cant always get it right but the way the nba is run is a fucking joke.

[NovU]

i don't think this is the only year, refs fucked up the outcome of the games. so my question is why didn't league do anything to punish suspicious calls before? i'm sure they could have done lots to prevent any of this from happening. so i think it's safe to say titles of last few years are somewhat tainted.

edit: so many players been vocal and some even got fined complaining about refs. but where was the league when refs should been fined not players.

[Dro]

Just the fact that an NBA referee is facing charges for fixing a specific game is enough for me to relish in the Spurs' tainted NBA championship.

Not really, in the end I don't think anyone could question the Spurs supremacy this past season and especially in the playoffs. No need to argue on that.

I'd say on all the forums I've visited, a nice 50% chunk of the people view the championship as tainted.

[Ty-Land]

Was just reading that 20 ref's are to be named by Donaghy and the FBI for having involvement in gambling on games they officiated, according to an ESPN forum. If this is true, then the NBA reputation is in tatters. Basically any questionable decision will be doubted. I'm hoping this is not the case for the sake of the league.

[Andrew]

For the sake of the league, I hope Donaghy is just trying to name names in an effort to make it seem as though he's merely part of a widespread problem in the NBA rather than a lone rogue official as he's portrayed as being thus far.

[Drex]

Holy motherfucker. Biggest sports scandal ever, maybe?

[Andrew]

Perhaps, but there's been quite a few noteworthy scandals over the years. NCAA basketball had its own point-shaving scandal back in the 60s that prevented Connie Hawkins from playing in the NBA for several years (despite his innocence).

[Andreas Dahl]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2979605

It doesn't say that they've betted on any games, and that it probably isn't any illegal bets. But, given the very harsh rules that the referees has to go by ("According to the antigambling rules given to referees, officials are not allowed to do any kind of betting, except for offseason trips to the race track.") along with the fact that David Stern has said that he'll fire any referees involved in (non sanctioned) gambling, this could lead to quite a bit of a stir.

[Sauru]

i wont be shocked if it comes out that this runs alot deeper than just one man

[Patr1ck]

Yeah, because he allegedly had "insider information" and told people who to bet on. I don't really think one ref could pull this off because it would look too suspicious. Maybe Donaghy recognized he is taking the fall for the mass, had a change of heart and said "F that, they're all goin down."

The refs are going to have a very hard time this year officiating games. You know you are going to hear "Donaghy' chants or something when the home crowd doesn't like the call.

[Sauru]

yeah this will probably be the worst year ever to ref in the nba lol

[Andrew]

If the other officials that Donaghy is naming haven't gambled on games they've officiated or broken any other laws then I don't think it casts a shadow of doubt over their integrity or brings their calls into question. If they did break an NBA rule that prohibits them from any kind of gambling during the season then obviously they will have to suffer the consequences but their actions wouldn't be as harmful as Donaghy's.

[Sauru]

its my opinion that the integrity of the nba was already in question prior to this event coming out anyway. it was painfully obvious to anyone who watches the nba that half the refs are clueless and the way the flop is taking over the nba is insane. superstars get calls just cause and falling is the only real way to defend these said superstars. the league needs a major overhaul on how the game is officiated

[Andrew]

I still think they need to review the "zero tolerance" policy as well and draw up some guidelines because some of the calls last season were just ridiculous. Some players got away with gesticulating wildly while some were whistled for doing little more than raising their eyebrows.

[Sauru]

fully agreed, there was so much wrong with last season the fact that they are not looking into making serious changes is kind of odd, to me anyway

[Andrew]

I guess in the eyes of the NBA, the zero tolerance policy is working because it sends a message to anyone who wants to complain after a whistle. Unfortunately that message isn't consistent since the lack of guidelines leave it up to the discretion of each individual referee. If the policy was more clearly defined, such as a player receiving a warning and then being T'd up if he continues to complain and perhaps even a player's demeanour being a factor then the calls would surely be more consistent.