Tim Donoghy airs NBA dirty laundry

[bobobrazil1984 0]

Debate:

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketba...istle_on_n.html

 

Ex-referee Tim Donaghy blows whistle on NBA dirty secrets

 

By JOHN MARZULLI

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

 

Tuesday, June 10th 2008, 4:10 PM

 

Tim Donaghy, who pleaded guilty to charges of betting on games he officiated, is now airing NBA's dirty laundry.

 

Ex-NBA referee Tim Donaghy told the feds two refs fixed the outcome of one playoff series - and that officials were told not to eject star players from games for fear of hurting ticket sales.

 

The bombshell allegations are contained in a court document filed Tuesday by Donaghy's lawyer. It describes the “inner workings" of the NBA in which top league executives used referees to manipulate games.

 

Donaghy, who pleaded guilty in Brooklyn Federal Court to charges of betting on games he officiated, told FBI agents “league officials would tell referees that they should withhold calling technical fouls on certain star players because doing so hurt ticket sales and television ratings," the document said.

 

Donaghy claims he was told that two refs who were “company men” acting in the interest of the NBA conspired to extend a playoff series in 2002 to a seventh game.

 

The referees allegedly ignored flagrant fouls committed by the team that needed to win. They also reportedly called "made-up fouls" against the other team which led to the ejection of two of their players. The team favored by the refs won that night and the next game to win the series.

 

The document does not name the teams. The Nets were in that playoff series, losing the championship finals to the Los Angeles Lakers. (Not from metr0man: uhh, article writer has the series wrong here

 

Donaghy also claimed a supervising referee told refs that an unidentified NBA executive did not want them to call technical fouls on star players or boot them from the game.

 

Donaghy told feds the league reprimanded a referee who disobeyed that edict in January 2000 and ejected an unnamed star player from a game in the first quarter.

 

Lawyer John Lauro filed the four-page letter to Federal Judge Carol Amon because none of the information was included in the government’s letter to the judge seeking leniency for Donaghy when he is sentenced next month.

 

Lauro has gone to war against Brooklyn federal prosecutors for offering plea deals to Donaghy's betting accomplices that give them less time than the disgraced ref, despite his extensive cooperation.

 

Donaghy claims referees have accepted autographs, free merchandise and meals from team coaches and managers. He told probers one referee used a team's practice facility to exercise and another played tennis with an NBA coach.

 

"These activities were against NBA rules, indeed, such inappropriate relationships could influence the outcome of games," Lauro wrote.

 

Lauro said he withheld the names of the teams, referees and league officials because the feds may still investigate the allegations.

 

So is anybody outside of LA truly shocked at the 2002 bit?

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Eh, Donaghy is facing jail time and has to gain by exposing as much as he can. I'm not putting stock in anything he says.

[Guest]

Yeah, let's believe the guy who's going to be put away for the rest of his life. He'll say anything to get less time.

 

I can believe the part about not ejecting star players, though.

[Just John 0]

The sad part is that if any of that is true, it's all going to be written off and ignored as the crazed ramblings of a convicted felon.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

Does anyone know what the chances are of the Feds actually investigating this? i have no idea of the legalities and process and if they'll actually do it. Its one thing is Donoghy says this. Its another Feds investigate and come up with something. I don't know how relavant to the case it would be though.

 

To be fair, WCF 2002 is a pretty easy target, it's always been clear there was either gross incompetence that should have resulted in ref firings or corruption going on there, so its the natural thing to pick if you're making shit up.

 

I wonder if there's any CORROBORATING EVIDENCE?

[bobobrazil1984 0]

ESPN's version of this article focuses on a different part, references to the 2005 incident where Jeff Van Gundy said a referee had told him that the refs were targeting Yao Ming after Cuban complained about something.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3436401

 

 

[Ripper 0]

What the fuck ever.

 

Listen, little known fact. The NBA fires a official almost every season. They have their own method of determining who is doing the best job and who is doing the worse and they fire the worse(I remember that one of the first female officials was fired a few years back after being the suckiest).

 

So of all these officials who have plenty of a reason to blow the whistle, none of them have come forward with news of all these stories of wrongdoings and corruption in the NBA.

 

It is just an asshole trying to throw everyone under the bus to save his own ass.

[alfdogg 0]

BA BOSS 90077 (1 hour ago) Report Violation

BOB DELANEY MUST SLEEP WITH DOC RIVERS.

[Ripper 0]

ESPN's version of this article focuses on a different part, references to the 2005 incident where Jeff Van Gundy said a referee had told him that the refs were targeting Yao Ming after Cuban complained about something.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3436401

 

I never got the big f'n deal here. It happens all the time.

 

Coaches or players see something complain, the refs make a point to adjust. LIke when Josh Howard was tripping suns players going up the court in the Suns Mavs series a few years back(pure genius by the way). The suns pointed it out, the refs called it, Josh Howard stop tripping people.

 

I don't get the big deal.

[alfdogg 0]

Donaghy told feds the league reprimanded a referee who disobeyed that edict in January 2000 and ejected an unnamed star player from a game in the first quarter.

 

FWIW, after strumming through the January '00 box scores, it looks like the Unnamed Star Player was Gary Payton, tossed by Unnamed Referee Ted Bernhardt.

 

Sonics @ Knicks, 1/24/00

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Donaghy told feds the league reprimanded a referee who disobeyed that edict in January 2000 and ejected an unnamed star player from a game in the first quarter.

 

FWIW, after strumming through the January '00 box scores, it looks like the Unnamed Star Player was Gary Payton, tossed by Unnamed Referee Ted Bernhardt.

 

Sonics @ Knicks, 1/24/00

I note the game recap has a story underneath addressing the circumstances. That's quite helpful.

[C Dubya 04 0]

The 2002 WCF was either officiated by the worst refs ever, or they were told to look the other way. I really don't think that they were "following orders", just that the refs were bad and then got caught up in the game, but I would not be SHOCKED if it was proven that the fix was in on that game.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

ESPN's version of this article focuses on a different part, references to the 2005 incident where Jeff Van Gundy said a referee had told him that the refs were targeting Yao Ming after Cuban complained about something.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3436401

 

I never got the big f'n deal here. It happens all the time.

 

Coaches or players see something complain, the refs make a point to adjust. LIke when Josh Howard was tripping suns players going up the court in the Suns Mavs series a few years back(pure genius by the way). The suns pointed it out, the refs called it, Josh Howard stop tripping people.

 

I don't get the big deal.

 

I think the big deal was that the orders were (allegedly) to only call those calls on Yao Ming and nobody else. Not that I particularly care for that story either, that's one of the "weakest" ref controversies. I'm more amused by the way ESPN glossed over the 2002 stuff... it's unclear what series they are talking about? Even though the letter mentioned a Game 7 which ESPN forgot to put in their summary?

[Ripper 0]

I mean it was a clear case of "watch Yao when he does this". They watched him and called the fouls. Again...I don't see the problem.

 

 

[C Dubya 04 0]

I think that there was only one series that went 7 where the team that was down 3-2 won. Not too hard to connect the dots.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I think that there was only one series that went 7 where the team that was down 3-2 won. Not too hard to connect the dots.

Yeah, apparently it's much harder to win two straight than to win one of two.

[C Dubya 04 0]

I think that there was only one series that went 7 where the team that was down 3-2 won. Not too hard to connect the dots.

Yeah, apparently it's much harder to win two straight than to win one of two.

 

Yeah, I meant that it wasn't hard to figure out what series was being referred to.

 

 

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I think that there was only one series that went 7 where the team that was down 3-2 won. Not too hard to connect the dots.

Yeah, apparently it's much harder to win two straight than to win one of two.

 

Yeah, I meant that it wasn't hard to figure out what series was being referred to.

I gotcha. I misunderstood earlier, my apologies.

[NoCalMike 0]

Game 6 of the 2002 WCF was some fucking bullshit by the officials. It would almost be a relief to be told they were ordered to officiate that goddamn poorly.

 

Who knows though. On one hand look at the source of the information, but on the other hand would it really be that suprising. It will be at least interesting though if his claims are investigated further. I mean what if they actually got one of the supposed "company man" refs to admit that he did it, would everyone just call him an oppurtunistic fool?

 

As a Kings fan, it just sucks to even hear about this because that was a very sore wound that was somewhat healed. I mean it took most Kings fans a long time to let go of the Game 6 shenanigens, and just place the entire series loss on the Kings poor free-throw shooting in Game 7, but this fucking bullshit rips the iron scab right off goddammit.

[Mike wanna be 0]

Isn't the whole "My referees are incorruptible and I'll fine anyone who says otherwise" gung-ho attitude exactly what allowed Donaghy to do what he did and get away with it as long as he did?

 

I don't expect Stern to come out and take Donaghy's statement as gospel, mind you, but all things considered it really couldn't hurt to have just said "We'll look into it" rather than maintaining the weakly faked smile and delusional facade of pretending everything's peaches and cream.

[NoCalMike 0]

Isn't the whole "My referees are incorruptible and I'll fine anyone who says otherwise" gung-ho attitude exactly what allowed Donaghy to do what he did and get away with it as long as he did?

 

I don't expect Stern to come out and take Donaghy's statement as gospel, mind you, but all things considered it really couldn't hurt to have just said "We'll look into it" rather than maintaining the weakly faked smile and delusional facade of pretending everything's peaches and cream.

 

Well that and the fact that Stern is never really denying anything outright, he is just basically taking the "those are words of a convicted felon" stance, which is ironic because that convicted felon was employed by your NBA Mr. Stern. And really if the guy is a convicted felon that was up to no good in the first place, chances are he might be a decent source on other shenanigans going on in or around the NBA.

[Mike wanna be 0]

Has he been fining people for questioning the officiating lately? I'd be looking for a reimbursement if I'd been fined for it at all in the last 8 years.

[Fökai 0]

I mean it was a clear case of "watch Yao when he does this". They watched him and called the fouls. Again...I don't see the problem.

But the big stink is being made about Van Gundy even mentioning the referee's comments -- as if the the NBA fined him because he was a conspiracy theorist. As a coach myself, I have had to ask a referee to target a player for throwing weakside elbows and illegal screens. When the opposing coach complained about a subsequent call to his player for a high elbow, the referee later told me that he told the coach he was watching that player from there on in. This is common in all levels of basketball. I can't believe that Van Gundy wouldn't even be allowed to talk about that type of targeting. It doesn't seem like a conspiracy - just the NBA using a fire extinguisher where there was no fire. That was a ridiculous fine for what JVG actually did.

[C Dubya 04 0]

The one thing Van Gundy said last night that I really agree with is that there needs to be a lot more transparency in the whole thing. If you got a complaint about Yao, watched the tapes and decided, yeah he's fouling people, you damn well better tell the other coach that too.

 

The NBA refs are amazingly bad. I know basketball is a tough sport to officiate, but the NBA refs are in general terrible at their jobs.

 

Stern's "I'm better than all of you and it's my league" attitude is not going to help this situation out, IMO. Having Crawford ref the Spurs most important playoff game was one of many examples of Stern not using common sense and just pretending that anyone who argues with his judgment is wrong. I still don't see how he could have let that happen. He's lucky there wasn't a worse blown call in that one to further the NBA conspiracy theories.

[Gert T 0]

Its interesting too that the NBA wants 1 million dollars from Donaghy for the costs of their investigation and since he would not be able to afford the restitution that is why he would get more jail time. So because of this his lawyer released this information.

 

Basically part of this is on Stern, if he had just let the situation cool off, this probably wouldn't have been released.

 

 

[Brett Favre 0]

That King/Laker stuff isn't surprising. I still remember that series as the Lakers getting every freaking call.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

Its interesting too that the NBA wants 1 million dollars from Donaghy for the costs of their investigation and since he would not be able to afford the restitution that is why he would get more jail time. So because of this his lawyer released this information.

 

Basically part of this is on Stern, if he had just let the situation cool off, this probably wouldn't have been released.

 

The allegations/information were actually revealed by Donoghy to FBI/whoever back in July 6 and September 6 (both in 2007) according to court docs (up on the smoking gun). it was only "made public" now (likely for the reasons you described) but it was all there in the case last year.

 

The court docs are actually a much more interesting read than the "sensationalist" style reporting of their contents, mainly because there's interestling little detail allegations that don't mean much in the grand scheme of things, but are worth reading. Like people in NBA's "ref observer" program going into the ref room, and asking refs to buy his book in exchange for positive ratings, etc etc.

 

I think its likely the more sensationalist of Mobster D's allegations are exaggerated but there's something rotten at the core of referees, even if its not clear what it it is. The other problem is, making shit up to federal investigators is actually ANOTHER crime and digs a deeper hole... so Donoghy better have some corroborating evidence here or he's in more trouble.

[Nightwing 0]

Yeah, let's believe the guy who's going to be put away for the rest of his life. He'll say anything to get less time.

 

I'd just like to make a few points, one of which is that Donoghy is only facing a maximum (if I'm to believe ESPN) of 33 months in jail. That's like, nothing in the context of what he did. Why talk shit and possibly get more time for making false accusations?

 

I don't see the logical reason to lie about this stuff now. It just doesn't make sense: His prison sentence is light for what he did, the $1,000,000 will easily be offset by the book he's almost certainly going to write. The guy will have enough money to retire at the end of this. To come out and give them another chance to get in trouble doesn't seem like the right idea, even out of "spite", so to speak. I also don't see how adding potential charges and years to his sentence "saves his ass" in the least; it's not like the Federal Government is going to hand out immunity without any substantial evidence here, and (again) his charges are relatively light to what they could be.

 

I don't completely buy into him, but it's stupid to dismiss it out-of-hand. What I want to see is the evidence he has of this, if any.

[Ripper 0]

Its not stupid. You have dozens of NBA former NBA officials that have felt completely screwed over by the league, sued them for firing them and such. But not a SINGLE one of them has EVER said anything close to this. The only one that has said anything along these terms happens to be going to prison for fixing games for the mob because of his gambling debts.

 

Just a little strange to me.

[C Dubya 04 0]

He shouldn't be taken at his word for this, but there's enough other things that have gone on (see the WCF game 6 of 2002) that it seems worth looking into.