GOLDMAN: But Derek Fisher and his Laker teammates certainly benefited from the referee's calls. It seemed a bit too perfect for Cleveland and the theory is the NBA seemed to be playing favorites with the city of Cleveland due to the city's long history of losing in sports, and 2014 presented one of the best draft classes coming out in recent memory. The league saw a team in the Orlando Magic who could be competitive soon, and were perhaps a player away. 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. In his most recent letter, Lauro stated that he was providing the new details because the prosecutors failed to provide all of the relevant information in their filing. The other notable non-call which I rated an "all refs" situation was on the inbounds at 0:12 where Kobe knocked Bibby to the floor with an elbow to the face, but Bibby was also grabbing Kobe at the time it happened so both were really guilty of infractions to some extent. 2002 Western Conference Finals On the court, the games between the two teams were definitely intense, culminating in the 2002 NBA Western Conference Finals, which featured Robert Horry's famous last-second three-pointer to beat the Kings in Game 4, a 1 point Kings win off of a Bibby field goal in the waning seconds of Game 5, a Commissioner David Stern, speaking before Game 3 of the NBA finals at Staples Center on Tuesday, dismissed all of the allegations as "baseless.". 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. Well, I don't think David Stern will complain. WebNBA Western Conference Finals History - Vegas Insider 2000-2001 Philadelphia Sixers Playoff Roster - RealGM NBA odds: With Joel Embiid injured, can Hawks upset 76ers? There is no contact whatsoever. 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. Web2002 Western Conference Finals might refer to: The Western Conference Finals of the 2002 Stanley Cup Playoffs The Western Conference Finals of the 2002 NBA Playoffs This The Pistons led the Lakers by one point in the final moments of Game 6 of the 1988 Finals. 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 Knicks would go on to win the series and make 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. I don't think there was any foul play here. After being arrested in 2007, Donaghywho now writes for the gambling picks site Sports Connection Winspled guilty to two felony charges of conspiracy. It was game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals. League-preferred being, of course, the result that generates the most revenue. The refs know what players are supposed to get calls, and I think they know who is expected to get the benefit of the doubt at the end of games. In the fourth quarter alone, the Lakers shot 27 free throws to Sacramento's nine. According to Donaghy, NBA executives directed referees "to manipulate games" in order to "boost ticket sales and television ratings," and he cited several examples. More often than not, a conspiracy will pop up and make you question a persons sanity, their grasp on reality Kobe Bryant basically punched Mike Bibby in the face without a call. According to his Facebook page, he is working on a book entitled Honest to a Fault. A lot. 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. No one else has been charged with a crime. When he was in his prime, he was unstoppable.. Viewed together, and paired with the context of the series and the amount of money the NBA stood to gain from a Game 7, a different picture emerges. The Lakers were able to tie the series in game four. Join us for a March Madness Webinar on Tuesday, March 7 at 8pm ET. Because there's nothing wrong with being angry when someone attacks your friend or teammate. My reaction to Game 1 of the 2012 Knicks-Heat first-round series was brash and premature. I recommend you read his entire, very sober explanation. Take that with a grain of salt though, because I also blame LeBron for our national debt, the cancellation of Arrested Development and world hunger. But still, it was only one game, which is why it loses the No. 1 Dallas, and then an underwhelming Cavs team in the finals. Ted Bernhardt's calls slightly favored the Lakers, and Dick Bavetta's calls, especially late in the game, were more in favor of the Lakers than anyone. Accuracy and availability may vary. The game was refereed by three tenured veterans, Dick Bavetta, Ted Bernhardt and Bob Delaney. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. 4 seed who lucked out and avoided No. Orlando Magic Somehow Win The 1993 Lottery, 12. Lottery night came, and the Golden State Warriors were the worst team in the NBA in 1985 and were hopeful they would get the first selection in the draft. In his book Personal Foul, Donaghy wrote that As soon as the referees for the game were chosen, the rest of us [other NBA refs] knew immediately there would be a Game 7. Asked to elaborate, Donaghy wrote me that Bavetta would always say he was the NBAs go to guy and he would always help make the series go another game he said [this] to me before the game in L.A.. The Lakers attempted 18 more free throws in the quarter. The Questionable Calls of the 2006 NBA finals, 5. 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. Pollards fifth and sixth foul calls. Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, I called it the worst officiated game in NBA history, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. This years playoffs added a dubious and crucial non-call benefitting the Miami Heat in their Eastern Conference matchup against the Boston Celtics to the conspiracy canon. 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. Instead, basketballs most notorious quarter transpired. Ed Malloy, who is one of the refs that will work the NBA Finals this year, is notably at the top of the list for incorrect non-calls per game, averaging 2.5 INCs during the regular season. Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant went down in history as the greatest LA Lakers duo. Another Western Conference Finals between the two archrivals felt destined when they ended up on opposite ends of the bracket come playoff time, the Kings as the 2 seed and Pacific Division champions and the Lakers as the 5 seed and reigning NBA champions. The Detroit Pistons were known around the NBA landscape as the bad boys, and their brand of basketball was physical and blue collar. Chris Webber and Mike Bibby were Sacramento's star duo. Hornets general manager Dell Demps had a deal in place which involved: Paul to the Lakers; Pau Gasol to the Houston Rockets; and Lamar Odom, Kevin Martin, Goran Dragic, Luis Scola and a first-round draft pick (from Houston via New York) to the Hornets. In Game 5 of the 1997 Eastern Conference semifinals, Charlie Ward and P.J. Would he have called the foul on Fisher at 1:27 that helped bring the Kings back within a point with plenty of time left? 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. We just wanted to get back to our Cow Palace even. Then came a statement he repeated like a mantra throughout his interview. What people don't remember are the bad calls that led to it. 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). The Lakers ended up winning in the final moments. At halftime, Chris Webber told us to just count on playing against eight out there, Pollard said, referring to the five Lakers on the court and the three referees. But what happened during those four nights in 2006 left a mark on the NBA's historical resum so big that it can never really be erased. When the 76ers got the first pick in the draft later that night no one was surprised. A bemused Adelman and Kings bench. They had a phenomenal season in 2002, sitting on top of the Western Conference with a record of 61-21. The Magic were an expansion team founded in 1989, and the expansion teams of the late '80s were struggling early on in the NBA. He never struck me as someone particularly worried about competitive balance and fairness. They defeated the Kings in Sacramento en route to capturing their third championship by sweeping the New Jersey Nets. Copyright 2008 NPR. Kobe answered in the affirmative, but also noted another crucial fact for the context: Well, Tim Donaghy definitely had money on it. 25 free throws for the Kings over the course of the game two less than the Lakers shot in the last quarter alone. This swung the 2007 title. And they did, carried by ONeal and a strong performance on the offensive boards. 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. The accusations are contained in a four-page letter, sent to U.S. District Judge Carol Amon, as part of Donaghy's plea for a lighter sentence. They were the big-market team with the superstars. Period. As it turns out, though, I wasn't too far off. We didn't have a chance to win that game. Look out for the delay between contact and the call. 1988 NBA finals: The Detroit Pistons cheated out of a championship, 13. He created what is, to me, one of the most damning referee critiques on record, which prompted lots of follow-up.). However, some say that their three-peat shouldn't have happened in the first place. Maybe that particular ref just has a loose definition of the word "tie," but I think there was some bias against Laimbeer involved here. Lakers supernovas Kobe Bryant and Shaquille ONeal paced the visitors in both games, while Webber and Bibby did their best to match suit while getting more out of the role players surrounding them in an offense that emphasized motion, passing and cutting to the rim. The match-up lived up to its billing. Fans sometimes cry foul that a league will extend a series so that they can generate more revenue, and this is done by fixing games potentially. I called it the worst officiated game in NBA history. There appears to be contact particularly on the fourth attempt. At the time the league had owned the New Orleans Hornets. All of the pieces fit. The fact that the NBA let a technicality swing a championship is just flat-out wrong. 3. - 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. 2002 Western Conference Finals Game 6: The Elbow, 8. Years of consecutive playoff matches bred fierce competition between the players, and palpable hatred between their fans. The New Orleans Hornets had just lost a superstar in Chris Paul, and the league knew that it had interfered in that transaction and had to make it up to the Hornets in some way or fashion. Bibby was clearly elbowed in the face by Kobe Bryant, but that did not stop Bryant from getting a foul call on Bibby and knocking down two free throws to win the game for the Lakers. Tom Goldman, NPR News, Los Angeles. They had an event for Game 7of the Western Conference finals between the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder, but they also had an event for Game 1of the NBA finals. For some reason, numbers like that don't convince people, so let's go back and look. 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. The whole purpose of the sky hook was that nobody could block it. Watch the replay. What is lost here is that Michael Jordan blatantly pushed off of Bryon Russell. But it seemed like the Kings Do you have a blog? 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. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. The Lakers went on to the NBA Finals, where they swept the New Jersey Nets, while the Kings went on Leno. 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