Lol! Seriously; if the refs are even admitting there's a double standard re: stars, and stars = championships, how can you not accept that refs have a prejudicial effect on championships?
Again I ask: If preferencial treatment is nothing wrong (or part of the game, as some people say), why is the official NBA denying it?
Because refs let everyone play at the end of games like that. Go back to that tape and check out Antoine Carr on those last few plays. Check out Mark Madsen fouling (his unintentional ones) in Game Six the other night. Scope out Malik Rose last year. And if all All-Stars get preferential treatment, then things even out.
I thought it was against Sac or Min. But either way, we were coming back at that game and we needed that game. If we won that game, we would've made the playoff in Steve's second year and Francis would've never been labled as a "loser".
I've posted this befor but I believe it's because Yao rarely complains. No one in the NBA just out right hacks somebody. Watch the games, the low post is expected to be physical, regardless who's down there. There will be pushing and shoving, the thing is that if any other player feels the defender goes past a certain point, and there's no whistle, they will tell the refs about it and the refs definitely will look at that more closely next position. Yao's got to start doing that.
It happened first in Sacramento, then I believe it happened again in Utah, when Steve was on pace to set a career high in scoring. Just a little more evidence that Steve is an idiot.
We shall go on to the end...we shall fight on the seas and oceans...we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.
See, I don't think if you criticize Steve, you are a Steve hater. But statements like this shows you have hatred for a certain player on your team. Especially when the ref himself (i remember reading in an article after the game) said that if it he knew it would be Steve's second tech, he wouldn't have called it.
I partially disagree with this statement. If he approaches during TO's or breaks in the game, that's fine. But if he is contantly complaining to the officials and worrying about not getting calls instead of getting back to play def. then it hurts your game (see SF). This has not helped get SF calls, I think he gets fewer calls b/c of this and more Tech's.
Is this the Utah game where the ref said that Francis tried to throw an elbow at Stockton and tossed him?
I went back and searched it on the internet and that's what happened. It wasn't taunting, the ref said he elbowed Stockton. And it happened in 02.
As far as that last shot.....tell Russell to try to play defense with your feet seperated facing up instead of 'running' to where you think the offensive player is going. People act like he was playing some Gary Payton/Pippen mid-90s defense, and Jordan pushed off with so much strength. He figured Jordan was going right so much he was basically running that direction instead of facing up and playing D. Hell, even my non-in-shape @ss would be able to nudge someone with my finger in that situation and send him flying a couple of feet in the direction his momentum is already sending him. Another mental lapse at the end of game 1 where he decided it would be a good iead to reach and he simply gets beat with a dribble to the left and a mid-range jumpshot. As far as star treatment goes. It's always been around, it just didn't become so popular 'til after media coverage of the NBA increased and an attempt counter certain teams like the Pistons and Knicks that played a certain way on defense towards certain individuals.
I think the non calls at the end of games is ridiculous too. It comes down to who can tackle who before somebody else runs over somebody else. That isn't basketball. If the refs would call the game consistently from beginning to end, without partiality to players, you would still have the great players making great plays at the end of games. But the difference is that you would have great TEAMS winning more instead of teams with a SUPERSTAR winning all the time. And frankly, I don't think the league wants that from a marketing standpoint. They'd rather have Kobe and Shaq than the Kings or Jazz. It sells more tickets and more advertising, plain and simple. So, they have the refs structure the game that way. But for the basketball purists, it means that we have a difficult time believing that the team that wins the championship every year has any credibility to call themself the best team in the NBA.
I would bet you that in the NBA finals starting Sunday, you will see the refs take a much harder stance against the physical play of the Pistons than they did in the conference playoffs and finals. I will bet that the Pistons have to battle foul trouble throughout the series and we will see plenty of plays where Shaq and Karla foul and it is not called. I would bet that on the same play Kobe driving the lane will get a foul call, and RIP will drive the lane and not get any foul call. Just take each game and count what you would call a foul on Shaq and see how many you come up with. Don't call the ticky tacky stuff fouls. Make sure it is an obvious foul if you like. But track it. Shaq commits around 14 fouls a game, of which 7 or 8 are blatently obvious. Then count how many times he is lollygagging in the lane for over 3 seconds. Then compare those numbers to what the officials actually call and the scores of the games. And watch what happens in the 4th quarter of any games that the Pistons are ahead going into the 4th. See how the physical play is turned up by the Lakers and they get away with fouling, and see how the Pistons are called for everything on the defensive end, and they become tentative because they realize they aren't gonna catch a break and every call and non call is going against them, and the Lakers MIRACULOUSLY creep back into the game, that is if they aren't already ahead going into the 4th. It is better for the NBA if the Lakers win the championship.
