The NBA..........where hypocrisy happens.

[Superman]

Depends on who they're playing. When they play another small market team, yeah, the ratings are bad. When they played the Knicks (1999), their ratings were almost twice what they were versus the Cavs. So it depends on the matchup.

Meh; that doesn't speak to the fact that the Spurs are one of the least popular teams in the NBA, and there's no reason for Stern to want to cheat them into the Finals every year, especially if that means that the fan-friendly Suns can't go.

And Cleveland may be a small market team, but they have one of the biggest sports stars in the world on their team, and that wasn't enough to not have the lowest rated Finals in history.

 

[kennadog]

Ut oh. I hope that we're not going to hear any suggestions that he was shoved by a third party who was standing, unnoticed, on the grassy knoll.

LOL. I think you win the thread, fnordius.

 

[Superman]

Obviously, Donaghy was not the only ref involved. The others that were involved were not ratted out (somehow) and still have their job today. Are they still involved with illegal gambling? Very few people can know for sure I guess.

What makes that so obvious to you? There's been no evidence publicized that supports that oh-so-obvious conclusion.

The problem is, why is it so easy to throw away the idea of one-siding calling and suspending when it was PROVEN of having been taking place over the last few years. A Kings fan especially should realize that it has been going on since at the very least the 2002 WCF.

Where is this said one-sided suspending? I disagree with that notion

Peja Stojakovic was suspended in 2003 for running into and pushing a ref, and we all called BS. Said that if that had been one of Stern's boys, that suspension wouldn't have happened.

Then, the next season, Tim Duncan got the same treatment. Tim Duncan is the guy that fuels a lot of these theories, ideas that Stern, for some unknown reason, wants the Spurs in the Finals every year ... even though the Spurs aren't a very popular NBA team or in a big market. But Duncan got suspended the same way small-market Peja did.

Isn't that smack-down evidence against your "one-sided" claim? Isn't this all about Amare and Diaw being suspended last year?

PS: Let's not blur the line between the Kings fan who believes that Stern cheated the Kings out of the Finals in 2002 and the Kings fan who believes that the refs called a bad Game 6 for no other reason than being bad refs. Just because I believe that the Kings were hosed doesn't mean that I believe there was a "conspiracy" to give the series to the Lakers.

And if I did believe that conspiracy, it would be based on the "small market loses to big market" argument, and would fly in the face of any idea that Stern wants to keep the Suns out of the Finals in favor of the Spurs, because it's the exact opposite argument.

 

[tradepeja]

Ut oh. I hope that we're not going to hear any suggestions that he was shoved by a third party who was standing, unnoticed, on the grassy knoll.

/thread

 

[NewMonkey]

Garnett should have been suspended - plain and simple. He didn't like the ref holding him, so broke free, pushing the ref back in the process. If you're not a superstar, that's a suspension.

I'm not going to argue these latest conspiracy theories, but I will say for the 1,000th time that Game 6 was fixed.

 

[Dave McNulla]

This is the correct interpretation here -- the referee initiated contact, not the other way around. The rule is there to prevent players from physically accosting/intimidating refs, which obviously wasn't the case here. If KG had pushed the ref to the floor or something, sure.

As for the off the bench thing, I think uolj is probably right too regarding the interpretation, although it had never occurred to me before. The rule makes it illegal to leave the bench area when an altercation takes place -- its an anti-brawl rule. But if you are already not in the bench area, then you can't be leaving it. That interpreation might depend on when you say the altercation began. They obviously hopped up on the initial play, but made no move toward the court after guys started scuffling.

people who want to believe there is a consipiracy will slant everything they see to support their desire. personally, if i felt that way (conspiracy), i'd just stop watching the nba, no griping, no complaints, just end it.

anybody who can't acknowledge a difference between 1 foot and 25 feet, or between contact and fouls called/technical fouls called, just isn't in the position to be an official or a league executive making decisions about who gets suspended and who does not.