It's time. We need to have a serious discussion about officiating. I can't take this anymore.

[Heat Check]

Forget the tired complaints about ref X having it in for player Y or team Z. While I'm not saying it's impossible, it's meaningless in the big picture. Players have never been treated equally in the NBA. That's just an integral part of the sports entertainment business.

No, what I'm talking about is an actual epidemic that's spreading, getting worse and worse, and it'll destroy the pro game if nothing is done.

Gaming the rules.

I know, I know. Nothing new, right? Who wants to hear another diatribe against James Harden and Chris Paul? What is this, 2015?

The problem is, it's not just those guys anymore. Literally everyone does it now. Starters, bench players, human victory cigars. Playing for the whistle has become an essential skill, like shooting or perimeter defense. Sometimes, it's the first option. Hell, the terrible rip-through flop is called a "rip-through MOVE" these days. LOL. Refs even have a special hand signal for it when they blow the whistle.

They're not even trying to pretend it's a foul in the act of shooting. Yet you get 2 free throws. Because, hey, why not. After all, the guy executed the rip-through flawlessly. Golf clap.

Think about it. They're rewarding a succesful flop, knowing full well that it is a flop, and they have absolutely no problem with it. This is where we are now.

That, to me, is by far the most serious part. I absolutely hate watching this shit, but I can't blame the players. It's a cut-throat league and you need to use every advantage you can get.

Now, excuse me for being that guy, but I do blame the refs. I blame them for going along with it, for creating a twisted game within a game, a kind of meta level, a shadow basketball where the rules are unwritten and always in flux, but they do exist. The referees have allowed themselves to be drawn into a kind of wink-wink relationship with the players where they act more like American Idol judges than enforcers of the rules of basketball. And they're loving it.

These days, when a team is coming down the floor, I have a sinking feeling. I know the whistle will come soon. And I won't understand why. Then we watch a super slo-mo replay and the announcers come up with a ridiculous explanation.

"His left leg definitely moved an inch".

"He was smart to accentuate the contact".

"That was a veteran play". (laughter)

The game is not for us anymore. It's moved up a level. The referees have finally found a way to be stars in their own little self-created universe, where the goal is not the basket but the almighty whistle. They move above and beyond the official rules, up there where things are less black and white. Where refereeing is art.

It doesn't have to make sense to us.

 

[PIP]

Crab dribble

 

[foucault87]

Not sure what the complaining is about. This is exactly what we watch basketball for. Not their fault you have bad taste in aesthetics

 

[bleedwineandgold03]

I agree with this thread I’m tired of the refs and it is ruining the sport

 

[cavsfever]

Crab dribble

An occasional travel isn’t nearly as bad as manipulated fouls. Foul manipulation strikes directly at the heart of the game by taking the central activity of scoring and replacing it with an entirely other “game” of manipulating the refs.

 

[Ethan]

I honestly stop watching when there's multiple possessions in a row of fouls being called.
It gets too boring. I normally tune back in during crunch time.

I figure the more ratings drop the more Ad's we'll see sneaking onto the court.
Everyone will still want to get paid even if less people watch.

 

[foucault87]

Again, not seeing it. This has to be the best season of basketball I have ever watched.

 

[Cassity14]

I think part of this problem is that today's athletes are so advanced and so skilled, that the rules haven't kept up with what they can physically do. The rip through move in particular is because guys are so twitchy quick that they can pull it off.

The other piece is the visibility of the entire league. Stars need to be marketed, and they need to put up big games for that to happen. Gone are the days where the team that was winning the most was always rewarded with the most publicity. Now everyone is on YouTube and going viral when they drop 50, no matter who it's against or how they got it.

 

[Heat Check]

 

[Benway]

All those pratfalls make me feel like a dang Athlete.

 

[Heat Check]

These playoffs are becoming a joke. In the offseason, the league needs to have a sitdown with the teams, the players union and the refs. This can't be the direction the game is allowed to go to. If nothing is done, it'll just get worse.

The flopping, whistle hunting and overeager, tone-deaf reffing is getting out of control. There is never a sense of the players being allowed to play the game. We're constantly "going to the monitor" and "taking a look at this". The physical playoff style we've come to expect is dead – if anything, the games are being called tighter than in the regular season. Glare at a defender for 2 seconds after a dunk, and you get hit with a taunting tech. Absolutely fucking ridiculous. I mean, at this point you can't even LOOK at the guy. I'm getting PTSD from expecting a whistle every time down the floor.

I cannot fathom who thinks that this amount of ridiculous stoppages is good for the game (well, other than advertisers, of course). Regular timeouts, official timeouts, constant monitor reviews, coaches challenges... it's just a chore to watch and it kills the rhythm of the game.

 

[bleedwineandgold03]

These playoffs are becoming a joke. In the offseason, the league needs to have a sitdown with the teams, the players union and the refs. This can't be direction the game is allowed to go to. If nothing is done, it'll just get worse.

The flopping, whistle hunting and overeager, tone-deaf reffing is getting out of control. There is never a sense of the players being allowed to play the game. We're constantly "going to the monitor" and "taking a look at this". The physical playoff style we've come to expect is dead – if anything, the games are being called tighter than in the regular season. Glare at a defender for 2 seconds after a dunk, and you get hit with a taunting tech. Absolutely fucking ridiculous. I mean, at this point you can't even LOOK at the guy. I'm getting PTSD from expecting a whistle every time down the floor.

I cannot fathom who thinks that this amount of ridiculous stoppages is good for the game (well, other than advertisers, of course). Regular timeouts, official timeouts, constant monitor reviews, coaches challenges... it's just a chore to watch and it kills the rhythm of the game.

I agreee 10000000% . I found no joy watching games now and days refs control it wayyy to much

 

[Lee]

I cannot fathom who thinks that this amount of ridiculous stoppages is good for the game (well, other than advertisers, of course). Regular timeouts, official timeouts, constant monitor reviews, coaches challenges... it's just a chore to watch and it kills the rhythm of the game.

Dont think of them as stoppages, think of them as Heat Checks.

 

[Rich]

I want to see a more physical game and less fouls but I don't think everyone wants that.

Most fans just want games called in favor of their team tbh.

 

[foucault87]

These playoffs are becoming a joke. In the offseason, the league needs to have a sitdown with the teams, the players union and the refs. This can't be the direction the game is allowed to go to. If nothing is done, it'll just get worse.

The flopping, whistle hunting and overeager, tone-deaf reffing is getting out of control. There is never a sense of the players being allowed to play the game. We're constantly "going to the monitor" and "taking a look at this". The physical playoff style we've come to expect is dead – if anything, the games are being called tighter than in the regular season. Glare at a defender for 2 seconds after a dunk, and you get hit with a taunting tech. Absolutely fucking ridiculous. I mean, at this point you can't even LOOK at the guy. I'm getting PTSD from expecting a whistle every time down the floor.

I cannot fathom who thinks that this amount of ridiculous stoppages is good for the game (well, other than advertisers, of course). Regular timeouts, official timeouts, constant monitor reviews, coaches challenges... it's just a chore to watch and it kills the rhythm of the game.

I have no idea what basketball you are watching but this has been excellent. Some of the best form I have seen in years. You have had some spicy takes before but this might be the hottest lol. I have been loving this