WebWhat if the 2002 Sacramento Kings were not screwed by the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals? WebLOS ANGELES NBA executives and referees are accused of broad misconduct and outright manipulation of game results, including a highly disputed 2002 playoff series, in GOLDMAN: But Derek Fisher and his Laker teammates certainly benefited from the referee's calls. The league had dealt with something like this before, they had seen the effect it had and they went forward with the suspension. The Lakers won Game 6 by attempting 18 more free throws than the Kings in the fourth quarter, and went on to win the 2002 NBA Finals. The Lakers crowd seemed nervous, and it felt like another buzzer beater was in order. The officiating seemed so uneven, it prompted consumer advocate Ralph Nader to call for an investigation. Neither were as high profile as franchise player Rasheed Wallace, but you could argue that they were more important in this particular game. The clock kept ticking. It felt like the arena was completely alive. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. Tim knew Referees A and F to be 'company men,' always acting in the interest of the NBA, and that night, it was in the NBA's interest to add another game to the series." All the lottery teams coveted Patrick Ewing of Georgetown. Pollard, who was careful not to pin the result on refereeing, said he remembered feeling that there was something amiss early on in the game and a feeling of helplessness. ONeal was controlling the paint, aided by the whistles Pollard fouled out in just 11 minutes of court time. This led to people thinking the league fixed the Western Conference Finals and helped the 73-win Warriors reach it so they could get more viewers for the NBA Finals. ), to Dwyane Wades record-setting parade to the free throw line in the 2006 NBA Finals has earned a cloud of suspicion. No, there's nowhere near enough evidence to support that claim. I recommend you read his entire, very sober explanation. To promote parity the league allowed Paul to be traded to the Los Angeles Clippers instead. 2002 Western Conference Finals Game 6: The Elbow, 8. The Jazz then put the ball in the hands of their best player in Karl Malone, but Malone was stripped of the ball by Jordan. The biggest star in the series (Kobe Bryant) shot seven. Not only did he make his "final" shot to win his sixth and final NBA title, but he did it over a man whose last name was "Russell"symbolically passing the torch of greatest player ever from Bill Russell to Jordan. After Christie drew a foul, Lakers forward Rick Fox slapped Christie across the face with an open hand. He broke the record for most games worked by an NBA official in 2006. . If anything, it would have been in the league's best interests for the Lakers to win and even the series. The stomachs of the Jazz fans were beginning to turn throughout the arena. The theory here is that the NBA thought it would be best for the highly star powered Los Angeles Lakers to be the face of the league still in 1988. ", We all think that probably referees should be under a separate entity than the NBA entirely, Jackson said, But I don't think that's going to happen. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. The prevailing theory here is that the NBA saw a fan base that was turned off from basketball after LeBrons decision. And they did, carried by ONeal and a strong performance on the offensive boards. The block/charge/no call situation is also about the worst of these in that it's such a snap judgement with significant effect. Had an offensive foul been called, the Bulls would have lost Game 6 86-85 and been forced to play Game 7 in Utah. The latest in the sports world, emailed daily. If you watched your friend get punched at a bar, would you get arrested for walking towards the person who did it? And the calls came. The Hornets had a 13% at getting the top pick, and it wasnt a shock to conspiracy theorists that they landed the pick because it seemed like the league was making up for vetoing the first Chris Paul trade a season earlier. Ralph Nader, the consumer advocate, weighed in, urging Stern to conduct a review. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Finals MVP: Shaquille O'Neal(36.3/12.3/3.8), Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Wednesday, March 1, 8:19PM. Some of these foul calls were EXTREMELY questionable when looking back at the game tape. If Games 4 and 5 served as the series zenith, and Game 6 as its nadir, Game 7 can best be described as its addendum. This looked like a panic whistle. Well, I'll let the numbers do the talking. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Many die-hard NBA fans swear by the theory that this series was With Sabonis out of the game, the Blazers had to defend Shaqat his absolute apexwith 6'8'' Brian Grant. The LA Lakers were in the third seed coming into the playoffs. The Boston Celtics lead the L.A. Lakers two games to one. The refs also made some bad calls against the Kings for almost the entirety of the game. Former NBA referee, Tim Donaghy, outright said that the NBA rigged the series, specifically game 6. The Lakers attempted 18 more free throws in the quarter. That's the game convicted former referee Tim Donaghy has said was essentially rigged, by the NBA, to be a Laker victory. The news certainly had a captive audience in Los Angeles. GOLDMAN: Scot Pollard played for Sacramento in the 2002 game. Western Conference Semifinals. The Chicago Bulls were going through a season full of acclamation. Is The NBA Rigged? Three fouls on Kings big man Lawrence Funderburke in just six minutes. I don't think he actively tries to rig NBA games, but I also believe he does nothing to stop refs from making it seem like he does. Join us for a March Madness Webinar on Tuesday, March 7 at 8pm ET. 1 Dallas, and then an underwhelming Cavs team in the finals. The Cavaliers got LeBron James back over the summer as well. It was game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals. In a separate matter, Lauro is requesting a subpoena to obtain results of the NBA's internal investigation regarding Donaghy and other referees. By the way, I'd be remiss if I didn't give some credit to Grantland's Bill Simmons, whose recent column on titles needing footnotes provided some valuable information for this piece (and saved me some big research time). Youve got to foul me to stop me, period.. The 2002 Lakers (as well as the team from our next slide) are one of two teams whose championships I adamantly refuse to validate. Indiana was the better team (the Knicks were the No. The typical conspiracy theories that we know of are: The Earth is flat, we never really landed on the moon, and a conspiracy or two has been floated around as to how things occurred when John F. Kennedy was shot and killed. According to Donaghy, the referee that officiated the notorious game 6, Dick Bevotta,was a fixer ofsomesorts within the league. Patrick Patterson wondered, "What kind of league are we becoming?" 93. What people don't remember are the bad calls that led to it. Kings fans, who routinely sold out Arco Arena during seasons of atrocious basketball, brought it to another level now, complete with ringing cowbells; the decibel level during the 2002 playoffs was measured as high as 112, about the same level of a jet engine. If you can't hold a 15-point lead in the fourth quarter of Game 7, you don't deserve to win the title. The conspiracy theory here is that the NBA wanted Ewing to landin a big market. In 1985 all lottery teams had the same odds of getting the number one selection, and this system was put in place to stop the wide spread practice of tanking around the NBA. The theory here is that the league realized it had a young rising superstar in Dwyane Wade, and they saw an opportunity to elevate Wade even more through this finals series. I'm not gonna cry wolf on this game, though. The Pistons led the Lakers by one point in the final moments of Game 6 of the 1988 Finals. And he's going to be sentenced for that crime, regardless of these desperate attempts to implicate as many people as he can." If they call it like theyre supposed to call it, the outcome will be the same it was tonight, ONeal said after the game. Kobe is a bigger star than Boston's entire big three combined. The teams owners, brothers and businessmen Joe and Gavin Maloof, led the way from their courtside seats, running from section to section like hype men at a rap concert. According to his Facebook page, he is working on a book entitled Honest to a Fault. If you don't think those free throws are important, remember that Games 3, 5 and 6 were all determined by three points or less. Only, they really aren't. The Magic were an expansion team founded in 1989, and the expansion teams of the late '80s were struggling early on in the NBA. Meanwhile, Donaghy alleges, the NBA was preparing to do just that. The NBA needed a star, so they created one. GOLDMAN: But yesterday, Pollard's comments were measured. Period. The league saw a team in the Orlando Magic who could be competitive soon, and were perhaps a player away. Mr. DEREK FISHER (Basketball Player, Los Angeles Lakers): And I remember we won the game, but I don't remember at any moment during the night, their helping us out here. Why this gets an honorable mention is that it's the single dumbest rule in all of sports. Fortunately, four teams in the East delivered. In 2000-2002, the Lakers topped the basketball world by winning a three-peat in the NBA Finals. Web2002 West Finals - LA Lakers vs Sacramento Kings Game 4 Highlights HD - Famous Buzzer. His shot missed. One timeout and missed Bryant jumper later, Bibbys shot seemed like it would be the franchises defining moment, as the Kings were just one win away from the NBA Finals. People remember Game 7 of the 2000 Western Conference Finals for the incredible comeback by the Lakers culminating in the most famous alley-oop in NBA history. The Throwback. So far, the series had been relatively normal. Two of Portland's biggest stars (Scottie Pippen and Arvydas Sabonis) fouled out. If Green isnt suspended perhaps the Warriors go on to win Game 5 and the championship instead of blowing a three to one lead. This is certainly plausible with Bevotta officiating plenty of Game 6s and 7s (the closing games of a series), which is good evidence for Donaghys claim. Some people cry conspiracy, claiming the game is rigged. "The referees followed the league instructions and Team 3 came back from behind to win the series," the letter said. The Bogus Hue Hollins call in the 1994 Eastern Conferance Semi Final, 10. Chris Webber was playing just as well as Shaq. Roland Beech of 82games.com has spent serious time detailing every single call of the notorious Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals. Doubtful. A missed three at the end of the game by a still bleeding Bibby to give the Lakers the win. The game and the series ended not with a bang but with a free throw marathon whimper, as the Kings shot a lousy 16-30 from the free throw line, and saw their heralded role-players out-performed by the Lakers much mocked reserves. We beat the crap out of them in Game 3, and we led in Game 4 for 47 minutes., A luck shot is one of those guys who has no form, Horry said after the game. The Lakers fell to a resurgent San Antonio Spurs team in six games, with inter-team tension between ONeal and Bryant perhaps at its all-time high. 2002 Western Conference Finals Game 6: The Elbow The Sacramento Kings were in the drivers seat to knocking off a young exciting Los Angeles Lakers team A former referee at the center of a gambling scandal has alleged that NBA referees rigged a 2002 playoff series to force it to seven games. Because of how many foul shots the Lakers attempted, many fans, especially Kings supporters, thought the NBA had fixed the game. Accuracy and availability may vary. Even what happened between the Lakers and Kings can be excused (slightly) by saying that it's only one game, the Kings had another chance to win the series. The referee crew assigned to Game 6 was Bavetta (whod overseen an ONeal-dominant game in Game 1), Bob Delaney and Ted Bernhardt. They were hungrier. You can look at one play over the course of a seven-game series and say, you know what, that might have been it. I think that there is a blatant star system involved in the NBA. The Cavaliers were a little lucky to have two chances at hitting the lottery, but the first round pick that they had acquired from the Clippers had just a 2.8% chance of converting into the number one pick after the Clippers finished with the eighth worst record in basketball. But still, I don't think there's any real chance that the NBA is actually rigged. But the Donaghy saga came back with a vengeance this week. Kings coach Rick Adelman counter-lobbied the refs through the press, decried his rivals gamesmanship, and insisted NBA officiating was above making up calls from one game to the next. Stern has said the report will be made public after Donaghy's sentencing. Michael Jordan was on a mission to win his sixth ring, but late in Game 6 the Utah Jazz looked poised to push the series to a seventh game. I think they know that certain players are expected to shoot a certain number of free throws, and I think they know, at least in the back of their mind, what is best for the league. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. Maybe that particular ref just has a loose definition of the word "tie," but I think there was some bias against Laimbeer involved here. The Kings only attempted nine free throws throughout the quarter, making seven. I don't think there was any foul play here. At the time the league had owned the New Orleans Hornets. A missed three at the end of the game by a still bleeding Bibby to give the Lakers the win. Hundreds of reporters are here for the finals, and many of them descended on two players at yesterday's media sessions. 3. Rumors of the dispute first surfaced during the fourth quarter. The game was refereed by three tenured veterans, Dick Bavetta, Ted Bernhardt and Bob Delaney. It claimed two of the three officials of Game 6 intentionally altered its outcome, which became a national frenzy respected Washington Post columnist and ESPN commentator Michael Wilbon wrote that I still consider [Game 6] the single worst-officiated game in the 28 years Ive been covering professional basketball. Jordan dribbled to his right then crossed over to his left, and also gave defender Byron Russell a slight shove to get an open look. Now Bernhardt did have the arguable turning point call of the game as it turns out at the 3:06 mark when Webber moved into the paint and made a basket only to have the shot wiped out with an offensive foul call. 1988 NBA finals: The Detroit Pistons cheated out of a championship, 13. I really want to throw the refs under the bus here because they did a terrible job, but something had to initiate it. The buzzer sounded and the Lakers won, 100-99. The charges, outlined by the lawyer, John Lauro, in a letter filed Tuesday, are the most detailed and the most provocative to emerge since July, when Donaghy was arrested and charged with conspiring with gamblers. Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. After being arrested in 2007, Donaghywho now writes for the gambling picks site Sports Connection Winspled guilty to two felony charges of conspiracy. Kobe was given Finals MVP (side note, he absolutely stole that trophy from Pau Gasol), and people seem to forget what really happened. Kobe Bryant was shooting terribly in Game 7. The score crept to 80-73. He fouled out, committing six personal fouls in only 11 minutes of play. They were so afraid to play physical defense by the middle of the second quarter that the Heat basically got any shot they wanted. My reaction to Game 1 of the 2012 Knicks-Heat first-round series was brash and premature. Well, I don't think David Stern will complain. If you look at the shot, it was straight form. I dont know. Draymond Green was a flagrant foul away from being suspended for a game after kicking his opponents in the Western Conference Finals. That way was the NBA draft lottery. Every questionable call seems to involve either a big-market team or a star on one side and someone or some team of lesser note on the other. They won the first two games of this series at home and if Smith would have gone to the foul line here and made both free throws, they would have won Game 5. We missed a ton of free throws and a ton of jumpers in the fourth quarter, Pollard said. You know the game has turned into a joke when at halftime "and the Oscar goes to" is trending on Twitter. It's rare for an announcer to comment on officiating, but he couldn't contain it saying "I'm just not gonna say anything anymore. Bob Delaney left the NBA in 2011 and wrote a book in 2008 about his years as an undercover officer in the New Jersey state police investigating the mob. - That a referee's relationship with one team's general manager "led to an attempt by that referee to influence a game's outcome" in 2004. WebHowever, when Minnesota lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals, the Lakers gained home court advantage for the NBA Finals because the Lakers posted a better regular season record at 56-26 than the Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons at 5428. Kobe Bryant basically punched Mike Bibby in the face without a call. Ted Bernhardt left the NBA in 2006 and was arrested in 2010 for causing a disturbance at a former girlfriends house. What was their crime? Stern did not respond to specific allegations but said that the NBA had fully cooperated with the government since last summer. @ Los Angeles Lakers. Miami, although technically not a bigger market, is a more nationally relevant city than Dallas. 2002 NBA Western Conference Finals Game 6: Sacramento Kings at Los Angeles Lakers Box Score, May 31, 2002. Yes, at a glance you can see the Lakers got some advantage from the calls down the stretch, but if Bavetta was really trying to rig the game, would he have called a tie up jump ball at the 3:26 mark (and subsequently had a bad toss that gave the ball to the Kings) with the Kings ahead by two when he could have called a foul on Divac? Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. What actuallyhappened was this abomination of a foul call. Why? So, from that standpoint, yes. But the mother ship of NBA conspiracy theories remains Game 6 of the classic 2002 Western Conference Finals between the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers and the upstart Sacramento Kings. When the Kings and the Lakers met in the 2003 preseason, the drama picked up right where it left off. Web2003 NBA Western Conference Finals Mavericks vs. Spurs League Champion: San Antonio Spurs. Find out more. Because there's nothing wrong with being angry when someone attacks your friend or teammate. LOS ANGELES NBA executives and referees are accused of broad misconduct and outright manipulation of game results, including a highly disputed 2002 playoff series, in the latest court filing by the lawyer for the former referee Tim Donaghy. Fast forward to around the 5:30 mark. Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals is the first example on this list of referees bailing out a star player. Ask any scorer, they'll tell you that when your shot isn't falling, you try to get to the line. It had become obvious that Pauls patience had run thin in New Orleans, and he was ready to join a team that was in a large market. David Stern stepped in and vetoed the trade, and the main reason the deal was off was so that the league could keep more of a competitive balance. A lot. This was where the Laker dynasty should have organically ended. From left, Shawn Bradley, Adrian Griffin and Eduardo Najera had a hard time watching the Mavs' playoff run end against the Spurs in the 2003 Western Conference finals. Before you decide what you think about Beech's critique, please do read the whole thing. Do you have a blog? The oft-maligned Webber played with both resolve and desperation, apparently intent on shedding his reputation as wilting in the big moment, with 20 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds. The series was tied at one game apiece coming into Game 3. WebFor more info on the BBALLBREAKDOWN Online Membership: http://bit.ly/BballMemberWhen the Kings and Lakers clashed in the 2002 Western Web2002 NBA Playoffs Standings Schedule and Results Leaders Player Stats Totals Per Game Per 36 Minutes Per 100 Possessions Advanced East Conf 1st Round Philadelphia 76ers But it seemed like the Kings were on the verge of dethroning the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Even without Jordan, the Bulls seemed destined to make it back to the NBA finals. Now we're talking. He didn't, because, like everyone else, he didn't have the reach. With the clock ticking down in the fourth quarter the Knicks were down by three.In the final seconds Larry Johnson launched a three pointer that washighly contested. Yeah, Walkers shot shouldnt have counted, Pollard said. From my college team at Kansas to the Kings. Additionally, the Lakers wereaveraging25 free throw attempts for the entire series, which is much more than the average team gets to shoot. Christie responded with an uppercut to the jaw, and the brawl that followed between the two teams spilled into the arena tunnel and involved ONeal, ONeals private security guards, much of the Kings bench and Christies wife. Top NBA executives rigged playoff series to pack arenas and pump up TV ratings by ordering officials to shamelessly make calls that benefited favored teams, disgraced ex-ref Tim Donaghy charged in Of course, if Sacramento had pulled out the series, the shot would now be a footnote. When one team shoots 28 more free throws than the other, you have to look into it. Or write about sports? Then, late in the third quarter of Game 2, things changed. Missing their star player, they lost to the Mavericks in seven games. Klay Thompson said he'd "never respect floppers." In 2002, the Sacramento Kings appeared to have the LA Lakers' number. In a league where savvy bettors consider which referees are assigned to a game, everything from the Patrick Ewing lottery, to Michael Jordans first retirement (or was it a suspension? Kareem makes two free throws, the Lakers win the game and Game 7 and are the '88 champs. Webbers fifth foul call. His sentencing is scheduled for next month. Bibby inbounded the ball to Webber, who promptly passed the ball to a curling Bibby and set a hard (Lakers fans would claim moving) screen on Bibbys defender Derek Fisher, who fell to the ground in a heap. All rights reserved. Ten years later, Ham sighed and paused for many seconds when trying to explain the effect Horrys shot had on the Kings franchise. As a whole, these plays suggest to me the refs were calling the game honestly, if perhaps not well. The argument for the NBA being rigged is typically made after an NBA Draft Lottery, NBA draft, a trade, and the main argument games being fixed. The shot wentin, and despite Johnson not being touched a foul wascalled which allowed Johnson to sink a game winning free-throw. Five days after Game 6, Nader sent an open letter to Stern calling for an investigation and independent review of the games officiating. The Knicks would go on to win the series and make the NBA Finals. Do you have a sports website? The Lakers tied the series and eventually won the championship, and many feel the Pistons were robbed of a title because of a horrendous call in Game 6. I have been doing that for all my career.. There has always been a group of people who believe in conspiracy theories, and there are some that believe the NBA is rigged in different ways. A former referee at the center of a gambling scandal has alleged that NBA referees rigged a 2002 playoff series to force it to seven games. Then 88-84. Fisher says it's a big leap, though, to say the game was rigged. The Magic two years later would be competing in the NBA Finals led by their young superstars in Shaq and Hardaway. Jordan was wide open because of an illegal move. This gets to the heart of the matter to me: despite the NBA's official claim that 95% of calls are correct over a season, there are just too many plays that are far from being clear cut wrong/right and many that fall into a gray area where even watching a play many times in slow motion you can make a case for different verdicts. San Antonio Spurs. The teams were not named in the court documents, but according to investigators, the Western Conference Finals was the only seven-game series that year. "Tim Donaghy has had honesty and credibility issues from the get-go," he said in a statement. In a harbinger of things to come, the Lakers stormed back to cut a 27-point fourth quarter lead in half before the final buzzer sounded. They got lucky on a fluke. Series in 2002 was rigged, says disgraced former NBA referee, https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/11/sports/11iht-REF.1.13635698.html. When the 76ers got the first pick in the draft later that night no one was surprised. But was the game rigged? Of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information was wide open of! Lead the L.A. Lakers two games to one out in just six minutes a flagrant foul away from suspended... N'T remember are the bad calls against the Kings franchise foul shots the Lakers in... Free throw line in the Finals when your shot is n't falling, you do n't think there was foul! Of the 2010 NBA Finals is the audio record Christie drew a foul wascalled which Johnson... Makes two free throws than the average team gets to shoot decide what you think about Beech critique. A player away a star player face with an open hand created one the news had! Not 2002 nba western conference finals rigged touched a foul wascalled which allowed Johnson to sink a game free-throw! 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