Insider Special: Refs Making Too Many Mistakes?

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NBA Scouting Report: Are the refs making too many mistakes?

By Terry Brown

Friday, December 20 Updated 11:39 AM EST

"Each official should have a definite and clear conception of his overall responsibility to include the intent and purpose of each rule. If all officials possess the same conception there will be a guaranteed uniformity in the administration of all contests." (excerpt from GUIDES FOR ADMINISTRATION AND APPLICATION OF THE RULES)

There are 12 rules in the "Official Rules of the National Basketball Association" beginning with a 94' by 50' court and ending with flagrant fouls to go along with 16 basic principles dealing with blocking, charging, taunting, shattered backboards and other assorted like matters as outlined on the NBA.com website.

But someone forgot to scrawl it in Krylon across any blacktop that I've ever seen.

"The officiating sucks," said one NBA scout. "It is the worse that I've ever seen it and I believe it's because these referees don't take it as seriously as they should. To them, it's just a paycheck."

Allen Iverson fakes right, fakes left, camera pans, we get a bit sea sick while his defender grabs at thin air and the Answer scores his 30th point for the 30th time in 30 games.

We were looking for go-to moves that were too good to be true.

You know what I'm talking about. Video game stunts. Mix Tape tricks. You remember the Dream Shake from Hakeem Olajuwon. Well, he was traveling. So was Patrick Ewing. Michael Jordan carried the ball and Tim Hardaway palmed it while inventing the killer cross over. Kevin McHale turned the baseline hook and drop step into art, two points and a free throw.

What we found, though, was something a little bit different but not that all unexpected.

"The restrictions placed upon the player by the rules are intended to create a balance of play, equal opportunity for the defense and the offense, provide reasonable safety and protection for all players and emphasize cleverness and skill without unduly limiting freedom of action of player or team." (excerpt from GUIDES FOR ADMINISTRATION AND APPLICATION OF THE RULES)

Rule No. 2 of the Official Rules of the National Basketball Association concerns officials and their duties and is eight sections long using roman numerals, bold letters and the whole shebang.

But I wonder how many of the 435 players in the NBA, give or take a few 15-day contracts, have actually read or even seen any portion of this document.

"I am amazed at the mistakes that referees are still making," said another scout. "And coaches are fed up. Players are, too. I even saw a referee follow a player back into a huddle and bark at him. I thought they were supposed to walk away. It's all ego."

Karl Malone has taken 24,874 shots in his 17-plus seasons. He knows how to get to the free-throw line. He's been there for 12,503 attempts. He turns to the referee in learned response on each missed shot.

Of course, he was fouled. He had to be fouled. Anybody who has played 1,376 games and scored 35,119 points would never miss a shot that badly. Right?

"Referees don't have to answer to anyone," said one of the scouts. "We never hear a word from Stu Jackson and he's a legit basketball guy. He could do something. Ho hum. Who cares? They need to publicly fine these guys or suspend them or send them down to the NBDL. Maybe then they'll sharpen their craft."

The primary purpose of penalties is to compensate a player who has been placed at a disadvantage through an illegal act of an opponent. A secondary purpose is to restrain players from committing acts which, if ignored, might lead to roughness even though they do not affect the immediate play. To implement this philosophy, many of the rules are written in general terms while the need for the rule may have been created by specific play situations. This practice eliminates the necessity for many additional rules and provides the officials the latitude and authority to adapt application of the rules to fit conditions of play in any particular game. (excerpt from GUIDES FOR ADMINISTRATION AND APPLICATION OF THE RULES)

Section III of Rule 2 of the Official Rules of the National Basketball Association is the scarriest of all. They call it Elastic Power and it reads, "The officials shall have the power to make decisions on any point not specifically covered in the rules."

Most of us learned the game by playing it, with our peers, through our coaches, watching TV. It is an oral tradition passed down through the generations. Arguing calls in a pick-up game is divine right.

You pay good money to come to a premium Web site to read as much about basketball as you possibly can. But when was the last time you signed up for NBA Rules 101?

"When the league is so hush-hush about its officiating, people are going to start looking for something," said a scout. "The Big 10, the NFL, they admit when they make mistakes and correct them . . . We get make-up calls like now we're really even."

Shaquille O'Neal is officially listed at 338 pounds, but you try telling that to the poor guy on his back who was assigned to guard him within a lane only 10 feet wide and a basket only 10 feet up with no handcuffs, bazooka or body armor.

Charge? Block? No whistle?

"The best referee is one that you never know is there," said one scout.

"Referees could blow the whistle alomst every time down the court," said another. "But you have to balance that with the fluidity of the game."

Dr. James Naismith hung a peach basket on a wall one day back in 1896 and called it basketball because his students needed something to keep them occupied during the cold months. Since then, Darius Miles, at 6-foot-9 after going directly from high school to the NBA, was moved to point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team with a starting center from Lithuania.

You'd need two commas for each of their annual incomes.

But you've still got to bounce the ball, pass it and shoot.

"I can sit here and complain all day," said one of the scouts. "but in reality, it's a brutal job."

"Officiating is tough," said another. "I wouldn't want to do it."