2&2 Slider To Leyritz
Well-known member
Every official in every sport is going to blow calls, but NBA officials are the most blatantly biased towards the better players/teams in their blown calls. I think that is because they are more directly in the face of the players and coaches than NFL or MLB. But if you are playing against Lebron, Embiid, Durant, or Popovich, you know going into the game that you are going to get fucked by the officials. Hopefully it is just not enough to affect the outcome, but the fucking is going to happen.
Other than Brady, I don't think that obvious officiating bias exists in the NFL or MLB. Like you know going into an NFL game that there will be awful calls, but I don't think there is a certainty that Mahomes or Rodgers is going to be the one getting them. And an MLB ump may have a wide strike zone, but I don't think it is always Kershaw getting that wide strike zone more than anyone else.
Just in the Hornets-Spurs game the other night, there was a about a 5 minute sequence where: (1) Miles Bridges takes a slap to the face and finger in the eye to where they have to stop the game because he is holding his eye - common foul and no review for hit to the head. (2) PJ Washington going for a loose ball swings his elbow back in a natural motion and hits a Spur in the face - after review deemed a hostile act flagrant 1 for a hit to the face. (3) On the very next possession after the long review, DeRozen making the exact same motion as Washington just made on a drive swings his elbow back and hits Monk in the face - after review common foul despite the elbow to the face - completely contrary to what they just determined not more than a minute of gameplay prior on basically the exact same play. (4) Rozier is under the defensive basket with the ball, DeRozen mis-times his jump for the rebound and comes in with a flying knee to the back of Rozier's head - common foul and not even a review despite the knee to the head. All those results, while wildly inconsistent, were obvious before the calls were finalized simply because of who was playing. If that was the Hornets and Knicks, those calls are probably 2-2. But because it was Hornets and Spurs, it was 4-0. Over the course of a game, those inconsistencies can easily create a 8-10 point swing via the additional foul shots and possessions.
That has always been the NBA officiating, from Kareem to MJ to Shaq to most obviously DWade in the Finals, and I don't know if it will ever be fixed. It is the most frustrating thing about watching the NBA. But two specific officiating issues that the NBA does need to address:
1. If a defender is already in the air, the jump shooter jumping sideways into the airborne defender to create contact should be either an offensive foul or at best a no-call. It should not be a defensive foul. The offensive player is the one creating contact via an unnatural shooting motion (recognizing that some shooters have made it a natural motion to get away from a defender, but this is going into a defender). The offensive player has the option to either jump straight into his natural shooting form (either towards the basket or away from the defender) and if the contact occurs then it is still a shooting foul, or not shoot at all and if the defender jumps into him then it is a non-shooting foul. But jumping sideways into the defender to create the contact should be an offensive foul.
2. The "space to land" foul should not be called on a defender who does not move or jump after the shooter leaves his feet. The defender should not be allowed to undercut the shooter by moving towards him and preventing him from landing, but if it is the shooter's momentum is carrying him into the defender's established location either forward or sideways backwards, the defender should have the right to occupy that space with his feet and it should not be a defensive foul.
Other than Brady, I don't think that obvious officiating bias exists in the NFL or MLB. Like you know going into an NFL game that there will be awful calls, but I don't think there is a certainty that Mahomes or Rodgers is going to be the one getting them. And an MLB ump may have a wide strike zone, but I don't think it is always Kershaw getting that wide strike zone more than anyone else.
Just in the Hornets-Spurs game the other night, there was a about a 5 minute sequence where: (1) Miles Bridges takes a slap to the face and finger in the eye to where they have to stop the game because he is holding his eye - common foul and no review for hit to the head. (2) PJ Washington going for a loose ball swings his elbow back in a natural motion and hits a Spur in the face - after review deemed a hostile act flagrant 1 for a hit to the face. (3) On the very next possession after the long review, DeRozen making the exact same motion as Washington just made on a drive swings his elbow back and hits Monk in the face - after review common foul despite the elbow to the face - completely contrary to what they just determined not more than a minute of gameplay prior on basically the exact same play. (4) Rozier is under the defensive basket with the ball, DeRozen mis-times his jump for the rebound and comes in with a flying knee to the back of Rozier's head - common foul and not even a review despite the knee to the head. All those results, while wildly inconsistent, were obvious before the calls were finalized simply because of who was playing. If that was the Hornets and Knicks, those calls are probably 2-2. But because it was Hornets and Spurs, it was 4-0. Over the course of a game, those inconsistencies can easily create a 8-10 point swing via the additional foul shots and possessions.
That has always been the NBA officiating, from Kareem to MJ to Shaq to most obviously DWade in the Finals, and I don't know if it will ever be fixed. It is the most frustrating thing about watching the NBA. But two specific officiating issues that the NBA does need to address:
1. If a defender is already in the air, the jump shooter jumping sideways into the airborne defender to create contact should be either an offensive foul or at best a no-call. It should not be a defensive foul. The offensive player is the one creating contact via an unnatural shooting motion (recognizing that some shooters have made it a natural motion to get away from a defender, but this is going into a defender). The offensive player has the option to either jump straight into his natural shooting form (either towards the basket or away from the defender) and if the contact occurs then it is still a shooting foul, or not shoot at all and if the defender jumps into him then it is a non-shooting foul. But jumping sideways into the defender to create the contact should be an offensive foul.
2. The "space to land" foul should not be called on a defender who does not move or jump after the shooter leaves his feet. The defender should not be allowed to undercut the shooter by moving towards him and preventing him from landing, but if it is the shooter's momentum is carrying him into the defender's established location either forward or sideways backwards, the defender should have the right to occupy that space with his feet and it should not be a defensive foul.
Last edited:
