Okc hates joey too

[etbluffer]

http://blog.newsok.com/thunderrumbli...-joe-crawford/

I can’t tell you why Thunder heads don’t like referee Joe Crawford.

Maybe it’s the same reason every fan in every sport in every city seems to hate every referee. It’s just a part of sports. You boo the official. You swear him or her. You blame them for blowing calls and costing your team the big game.

But how Crawford became the bane of Thunder heads’ existence is beyond me.

Crawford is the crew chief for tonight’s pivotal Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals between the Thunder and Spurs. His partners will be Bill Kennedy and Greg Willard. The crew’s alternate is slated to be Rodney Mott. But none of those last three names matter much around here.

It’s Crawford who Thunder fans can’t stand.

The question is why?
O
There is a widespread belief among NBA fans that if people know a referee’s name, he’s a bad one. And Crawford might be the most well-known NBA ref there is. But the league keeps using him for a reason. He must be doing something right.

Crawford has a reputation for having a short temper with players and coaches and a quick trigger in slapping them with technical fouls. Watch how curt Crawford is while handling conflict on the court and you might be led to believe the 60-year-old is simply grumpy in his old age.

But aside from the sideshow, Crawford hasn’t made any blatantly bad calls against the Thunder that I can remember. The Spurs? Now they’ve got a reason to despise the man. In Oklahoma City, though, Crawford has mostly come in, conducted his business and moved on to the next city without much controversy. Has he missed calls here or there? Of course. Who hasn’t? But the outright hatred for the guy remains a mystery. Thunder fans seem to fear the man. Over the past several weeks, I’ve gotten inquiries on the morning of games about who the referees would be that night. When the answer doesn’t involve Crawford the response generally is some form of “Whew!” Whenever Crawford’s name is listed among the trio, the response is some mix of expletives and violence.

“I want to punch Joey in the face,” one of my Twitter followers wrote this morning in reply to my tweet announcing tonight’s crew.

The Thunder’s postseason won-loss record perhaps sheds a sliver of light on the situation.

With Crawford on the court, the Thunder is 2-4 all-time (Oklahoma City era only) in playoff games. Without him, the Thunder is 20-11.

Coincidence?

I have no idea.

But if the Thunder loses tonight, there’s no doubt it’ll somehow be Crawford’s fault.

-DM-

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[CGD]

Ah the sign that you've made it as a franchise...

[hater]

he's a great ref. fans are just homers in general.

[naico]

lol @ Oklahoma writers trying to pressure refs

[Jimmy Early]

As a Thunder fan, I'm actually kind of glad to know that Joey Crawford is the crew chief tonight. His main fault, as I see it, is that he tends to play to the crowd - he's probably more of a "homer" ref than any other. He thinks he IS part of the show, and therefore he responds more to boos, shading the next close call toward the home team and making BIG, showy calls against the visiting team.

It won't likely affect the outcome tonight, but I don't mind hearing the news that Crawford will be on the court. Can't say other Thunder fans would agree.

[HI-FI]

lol @ Oklahoma writers trying to pressure refs

yeah it's amusing, it's like if a kid got a PS3 for Christmas but was still ing and whining for an XBOX. they already get hooked up more than most teams.

you practically graze Harden's homeless man beard and it's a foul. Ibaka is allowed to goal tend like he's in some Congo league.

it don't matter anymore. Whatever crazy history we have with Crawford, I think he'll have the cajones to not be pressured by the OK crowd. Crawford is the least of my concerns.