Hey, the Refs Are A Part of the Court!

[Russ]

I was at the Clippers-Suns game the other night when a referee screened off Clipper Radmanovich who was grabbing at a ball before it went out of bounds. He would have had it easily, too, but for the ref.

Clipper fans were outraged "The refs can't do that, can they?" they screamed.

"The ref is a part of the court," I reluctantly replied.

Same with bad calls, IMO. Bad calls are like bad bounces, long rebounds, a loose ball squirting out to a three-pointer shooter as the clock expires. Just the breaks of the game to be played through and overcome.

Refs don't make bad calls on purpose. They don't get in the way on purpose. It just happens.

In a short series the bad calls may not even out. Just like the bad bounces may not even out. But the better team can overcome both.

If Dallas wins, it's because they played better, schemed better, and matched up better. The Spurs still control their destiny in this series. The refs, the media, the league and the guys in black helicoptors don't. Hopefully the defending champs can prove that to all of us.

And hopefully the refs won't get in the way too much.

[DarrinS]

From Sports Illustrated website:

The Spurs made too many mistakes to deserve to win, but they didn't get any help from the refs. With Dallas trailing 111-109 with 15.4 seconds left, Nowitzki was bailed out on a questionable foul call as he tried to shed Bruce Bowen on a drive into the lane. Nowitzki wound up sinking both foul shots to tie the game with 8.5 seconds left. After the call, an angry Bowen reportedly went over to NBA commissioner David Stern seated courtside and said, "This is terrible!" The Spurs still had one final chance to win in regulation, but Tim Duncan's hook over Mavs center Erick Dampier clanged off the iron.

[GermationSensation]

From Sports Illustrated website:

The Spurs made too many mistakes to deserve to win, but they didn't get any help from the refs. With Dallas trailing 111-109 with 15.4 seconds left, Nowitzki was bailed out on a questionable foul call as he tried to shed Bruce Bowen on a drive into the lane. Nowitzki wound up sinking both foul shots to tie the game with 8.5 seconds left. After the call, an angry Bowen reportedly went over to NBA commissioner David Stern seated courtside and said, "This is terrible!" The Spurs still had one final chance to win in regulation, but Tim Duncan's hook over Mavs center Erick Dampier clanged off the iron.

Don't forget another turnover off an inbound on a possession where a basket probably would have sealed the win. Reggie Miller should have been in the crowd doing his choke gesture to every member of the Spurs.

[Russ]

Don't forget another turnover off an inbound on a possession where a basket probably would have sealed the win. Reggie Miller should have been in the crowd doing his choke gesture to every member of the Spurs.

Calling players chokers, like complaining about the refs, is something that the lamest fans do.

[NuGGeTs-FaN]

Calling players chokers, like complaining about the refs, is something that the lamest fans do.

dang, Spurstalk must be full of lame fans then

although i dont think this is a secret considering the amount of members on this board. There is bound to be some whiners and also some people who just get on with it without blaming everything on the refs

When the Nuggets get ripped off, i belong to the first group

[DarrinS]

dang, Spurstalk must be full of lame fans then

although i dont think this is a secret considering the amount of members on this board. There is bound to be some whiners and also some people who just get on with it without blaming everything on the refs

When the Nuggets get ripped off, i belong to the first group

Hey, the Spurs have been beaten in past seasons, by teams a LOT better than this years version of the Mavs. If they beat us straight up, I won't say a word. There were a few years when the Lakers just flat-out destroyed us. In games like that, there's nothing to complain about. As an example, the blowout in game 2 of this series. Nothing to complain about there. But, come on, two games in a row where Dork (oops), I mean Dirk, is bailed out by HIGHLY QUESTIONABLE foul calls? Give me a break. Maybe the Mavs go on to win those games without the calls, but we'll never know, will we?