NBA Officiating

[CavFanatic31]

plain and simple: it is terrible.

im not sure how many people watched the Cavs-Bulls game 3 but the game was BLOWN by the refs. Not sure who was reffing. What happened was the cavs down by 3 with about 1:30 to go and lebron takes a drive as luol deng moves to the side into him on his tip-toes while moving back. There was obvious contact and as there was lebron pulls up a shot and makes it. and one right? NO a charge. if they wouldve gotten the CORRECT call they would have had the ball tied with 11 seconds left. It seems like the refs got a little too into the home crowd. all season its been going on and i am sick of it. i realize they are human but this is the NBA.

ps sorry to all bulls fans :D GO CAVS!

[WilyWestbrook0]

As I mentioned in the game thread, I think the call on LeBron there was legit. He lowered his shoulder before Deng made contact while moving.

A truly bad ref moment was the no-call against Noah when he pasted LeBron in the face during a free throw box-out not long afterward.

[CavFanatic31]

it doesnt matter if his shoulder was down if deng wasnt even set

[WilyWestbrook0]

Refs nearly always are set against the player lowering his shoulder even if the defender is moving. Not sure exactly how the rulebook should interpret that play, but I see that kind of thing called often.

[cardcollector4725]

every single year people complain about the refs...i just imagine myself in the position that the refs are in and I KNOW for a fact with the speed of the game i would blow way more calls than what they do, nothing is perfect

[WilyWestbrook0]

Refs do have a thankless job. You need to have a really, really thick skin to deal with what they hear on a regular basis.

[tarheelsnipe]

Keep in mind that the NBA refs don't necessarily conform to traditional basketball rules. Joe Borgia, VP of the NBA's Referee Operations was quoted earlier this year as saying, "We don't really use the rulebook". There's no way to take that out of context. Fans (and more specifically fans that also play the game) have known for years that there are a lot of no-calls regarding traveling, double dribbling, blocking fouls, etc, in the interest of making the game more exciting to watch for recreational fans. At least they came out and said it. Although it makes me twitch in my chair watching Lebron and D-Wade take 3 or 4 steps to get to the basket, at least now I know what to expect from the refs instead of yelling at them.

[whalechaser]

Keep in mind that the NBA refs don't necessarily conform to traditional basketball rules. Joe Borgia, VP of the NBA's Referee Operations was quoted earlier this year as saying, "We don't really use the rulebook". There's no way to take that out of context. Fans (and more specifically fans that also play the game) have known for years that there are a lot of no-calls regarding traveling, double dribbling, blocking fouls, etc, in the interest of making the game more exciting to watch for recreational fans. At least they came out and said it. Although it makes me twitch in my chair watching Lebron and D-Wade take 3 or 4 steps to get to the basket, at least now I know what to expect from the refs instead of yelling at them.

It's not 3 or 4 steps. According to Lebron, it's a "crab dribble"

Officiating has always been terrible, it's been this way for a long time. It's partly the speed of the game, partly refs being human and making mistakes, partly David Stern/refs trying to fix the games, partly superstars getting special treatment, and partly the loose interpretation of the rules.

[Qwikflipz]

Lebron needs a call against him once in a while, so it looks like the NBA aren't trying to make a Cavs/LA final.

[HornetsCP3]

No offense but I am happy Lebron didn't get the call because superstars in the NBA get 90% of the calls. Its the playoffs and the Stars better get used to the physical game.