Commissioner David Stern, speaking before Game 3 of the NBA finals at Staples Center on Tuesday, dismissed all of the allegations as "baseless.". Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Basketball Reference Database. Web2002 NBA Playoffs Standings Schedule and Results Leaders Player Stats Totals Per Game Per 36 Minutes Per 100 Possessions Advanced East Conf 1st Round Philadelphia 76ers Web2003 NBA Western Conference Finals Mavericks vs. Spurs League Champion: San Antonio Spurs. As it turns out, though, I wasn't too far off. I personally think that the fourth block was a foul, and it was a bad non call, but I'm not going to cry over this one. The Los Angeles Lakers shot 40 free throws in that game - 27 in the fourth quarter - and beat Sacramento, 106-102, forcing a seventh game. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? No one else has been charged with a crime. Mr. POLLARD: You'd think one other referee that maybe didn't have so much against him, the world against him, like Tim Donaghy does right now, would maybe mention that at some other time. 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 refs knew this and had their whistles ready because of it. Meanwhile, Donaghy alleges, the NBA was preparing to do just that. ), to Dwyane Wades record-setting parade to the free throw line in the 2006 NBA Finals has earned a cloud of suspicion. The game caused such immediate and public blowback that even consumer advocate and perennial Presidential candidate Ralph Nader got involved. There has always been a group of people who believe in conspiracy theories, and there are some that believe the NBA is rigged in different ways. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Or write about sports? If you look at the shot, it was straight form. Web2002 West Finals - LA Lakers vs Sacramento Kings Game 4 Highlights HD - Famous Buzzer. 25 free throws for the Kings over the course of the game two less than the Lakers shot in the last quarter alone. GOLDMAN: Scot Pollard played for Sacramento in the 2002 game. 93. When he heard about Donaghy's allegations this week, Pollard was quoted as saying: I knew it. They had the two biggest stars of the seriesone that was there for his last rodeo, the other ready to build a legacy at his first. After being arrested in 2007, Donaghywho now writes for the gambling picks site Sports Connection Winspled guilty to two felony charges of conspiracy. 29K views 2 years ago. Two of Portland's biggest stars (Scottie Pippen and Arvydas Sabonis) fouled out. In other words, they went to the line about as often as LeBron James flopped. With Sabonis out of the game, the Blazers had to defend Shaqat his absolute apexwith 6'8'' Brian Grant. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. In 1985 all lottery teams had the same odds of getting the number one selection, and this system was put in place to stop the wide spread practice of tanking around the NBA. The score crept to 80-73. GOLDMAN: But yesterday, Pollard's comments were measured. The referee crew assigned to Game 6 was Bavetta (whod overseen an ONeal-dominant game in Game 1), Bob Delaney and Ted Bernhardt. How often do we see calls made that long after the initial contact? Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Wednesday, March 1, 8:19PM. They got lucky on a fluke. Pistons win. The Lakers were able to tie the series in game four. 2016 Western Conference Finals Rigged? The Magic two years later would be competing in the NBA Finals led by their young superstars in Shaq and Hardaway. Some people cry conspiracy, claiming the game is rigged. 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. In a second letter filed Tuesday, Lauro said that the league was asking for $1 million in restitution from Donaghy, presumably to cover the costs of its internal review. 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. We just wanted to get back to our Cow Palace even. Then came a statement he repeated like a mantra throughout his interview. ONeal helped the Magic greatly improve just barely missing out on the playoffs in the 1992-93 NBA season. The Lakers had beaten the Kings both of the previous years in the playoffs en route to titles, but Sacramento now had clutch-shooting point guard Mike Bibby on its already deep roster, and held home court advantage over their rivals to the south for the first timethe spoils of an NBA-best 61-21 regular season record. The Lakers went on to the NBA Finals, where they swept the New Jersey Nets, while the Kings went on Leno. Is it so crazy to think they could have beaten the Bulls at home in a potential Game 7? I really want to throw the refs under the bus here because they did a terrible job, but something had to initiate it. And people wonder how the Blazers blew that game. Do Harsh Punishments Ease Gambling's Stain? The series was tied at one game apiece coming into Game 3. WebLOS ANGELES NBA executives and referees are accused of broad misconduct and outright manipulation of game results, including a highly disputed 2002 playoff series, in Donaghy claimed that the referee in question told him that he planned to favor the general manager's team in a game that night. I'm not gonna cry wolf on this game, though. As a whole, these plays suggest to me the refs were calling the game honestly, if perhaps not well. (If you're wondering, Pippen averaged less than three fouls per game over his career.). Though no one thought much of it at the time, the lead official of Game 1, an NBA veteran named Dick Bavetta, reffed an extremely tight game in the post. I'm willing to look at this as just a bad call, but an asterisk should always be next to this moment. Id never experienced anything quite like it, said writer James Ham, the editor of ESPNs Kings site, Cowbell Kingdom. The stomachs of the Jazz fans were beginning to turn throughout the arena. The logistics of that would be impossible, and it would be too hard to hide. Donaghy claims that in January 2000, a referee ejected a star player in the first quarter of a game and "later was reprimanded privately by the league." Watch this. The game was refereed by three tenured veterans, Dick Bavetta, Ted Bernhardt and Bob Delaney. Kobe Bryant was shooting terribly in Game 7. 8 seed) and they shouldn't have let one bad call ruin the series for them, but they folded, winning only one more game in the series. But the referees/league didnt allow the better team to win.. Or write about sports? Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. In fact, he says the NBA did not contact him. Join our linker program. Lauro and Donaghy also cited a well-publicized controversy involving a 2005 playoff series between the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks. Mr. FISHER: Games are called differently every night. The ball went straight to Lakers forward Robert Big Shot Horry, one of the games all-time clutch-shooting role players, who calmly sank a wide-open three. Data Provided By What are your thoughts on the officiating? Do you have a blog? The NBA Draft Lottery is the easiest to rig, and rigging the lottery can be done out of the public view. 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. Surely it would be hard for any team to move past these two struggling franchises, but the league saw an opportunity to again cause controversy. Kobe answered in the affirmative, but also noted another crucial fact for the context: Well, Tim Donaghy definitely had money on it. We knew we were the better team. Sacramento, which had never won a playoff game before in the Lakers Staples Center, broke that streak in Game 3, winning 103-90. Mutumbo Congratulates Sixers On 1st Pick In 2016, 1. Webbers clean block on Bryant negated by a ghost foul on Kings guard Doug Christie. But still, I don't think there's any real chance that the NBA is actually rigged. Derek Fisher joked yesterday: Regardless of the allegations, he's not giving back his championship ring. One timeout and missed Bryant jumper later, Bibbys shot seemed like it would be the franchises defining moment, as the Kings were just one win away from the NBA Finals. However, I'm willing to overlook this call. Jordan dribbled to his right then crossed over to his left, and also gave defender Byron Russell a slight shove to get an open look. He says he simply thought about the situation a little more and doesn't believe in an NBA referee conspiracy, in large part because the allegations are coming from just one man, Tim Donaghy, who didn't even referee the controversial game. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Fortunately, four teams in the East delivered. Vlade Divac did what every big man has been taught their entire life get the ball away from the basket, Pollard said. Despite the questionable calls, the Kings were shooting well and entered the quarter tied at 75. 9 9. NBA Finals 2000. In the final quarter of their 106 to 102 victory, L.A. shot 27 free throws to Sacramento's nine. Through it all, however, Beech finds it very tough to support the notion that the game was rigged. 4 seed who lucked out and avoided No. After successfully winning the first two rounds of the 2002 playoffs, it was time to settle the score between the Kings and Lakers. The teams were not named in the court documents, but according to investigators, the Western Conference Finals was the only seven-game series that year. His sentencing is scheduled for next month. The Lakers had Kobe and Shaq. The game was tight the entire way and the Kings crowd stayed in a cowbell-ringing frenzy the entire way; going to overtime seemed both expected and fitting. We still knew theyd try to come back.. 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. This is probably the only call in NBA history to definitively swing a title, which is why it's so high on this list. Or this. They were the big-market team with the superstars. Here's what I think really happens. The dynamic pair, one of the NBAs greatest and most volatile ever, would both win titles again, but not with one another. Kings 'robbed' in 2002 Western Conference finals, Tim Donaghy The Hornets had a 13% at getting the top pick, and it wasnt a shock to conspiracy theorists that they landed the pick because it seemed like the league was making up for vetoing the first Chris Paul trade a season earlier. WebAnswer (1 of 8): No, not reallynot if you trust the reporters and analysts that have explored this issue and/or can read closely enough to verify their findings for yourself. This was due to the Bulls being without superstar Michael Jordan, and the team's fate now rested on the shoulders of Scottie Pippen. In a separate matter, Lauro is requesting a subpoena to obtain results of the NBA's internal investigation regarding Donaghy and other referees. The Greatest Show on Court, Sacramento had enthused casual fans and NBA junkies alike since 1999 with legendary assistant coach Pete Carrils Princeton offense that produced a unique combination of flash and fundamentals. The Kings, their fans and many in the news media were outraged by the officiating that night. The Lakers were back-to-back defending champions at that point. A bench player named Leon Powe shot more free throws (13) than the entire Lakers team. While it felt as though the Kings had already won five games, as Webber put it before the game, the series shifted back to Sacramento for a winner-take-all Game 7. According to Donaghy, NBA executives directed referees "to manipulate games" in order to "boost ticket sales and television ratings," and he cited several examples. The whole purpose of the sky hook was that nobody could block it. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. 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 Say what you will, but I don't think any reasonable fan or person can deny that something weird was going on. This led to people thinking the league fixed the Western Conference Finals and helped the 73-win Warriors reach it so they could get more viewers for the NBA Finals. Chris Webber and Mike Bibby were Sacramento's star duo. Bibby and ONeal both performed masterfully. Ten years later, Ham sighed and paused for many seconds when trying to explain the effect Horrys shot had on the Kings franchise. Mr. DEREK FISHER (Basketball Player, Los Angeles Lakers): And I remember we won the game, but I don't remember at any moment during the night, their helping us out here. While Kirkland ranks comfortably among the extensive list of referees , Zarba is right in the bottom-25, and Tiven ranked second to last. The 2001 Bucks team was a memorable squad, surrounded . 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 Orlando Magic had just won the draft lottery in 1992, and as a result drafted Shaquille ONeal with the first pick in the 1992 NBA draft. (And remember, Beech is no company man. The infamy surrounding this game is just too severe to ignore. Webbers fifth foul call. The NBA has yet to publicize the results of its review, which was conducted by an outside lawyer, Lawrence Pedowitz. That isessentially givingthe Lakers an opportunity to score 27 extra points in the last quarter of a close game. He kidded with reporters that men in black visited him and forced him to change his story. Divac, the Kings best defensive big man, was lost near the end of regulation after picking up a fifth phantom foul just minutes earlier. You know the game has turned into a joke when at halftime "and the Oscar goes to" is trending on Twitter. Game 1. What is lost here is that Michael Jordan blatantly pushed off of Bryon Russell. In their letter, Lauro and Donaghy made a number of other charges, among them: - That referees "socialized frequently with coaches and players" and asked for autographs and free merchandise, violating league rules. One of those had to do with whether or not the 2002 NBA Western Conference Finals were rigged. We present them here for purely educational purposes. The LA Lakers' success at the beginning of the new millennium began a new era. 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. I recommend you read his entire, very sober explanation. The Lakers were back-to-back defending champions at that point. Patrick Patterson wondered, "What kind of league are we becoming?" Bob Delaney left the NBA in 2011 and wrote a book in 2008 about his years as an undercover officer in the New Jersey state police investigating the mob. Delaney wasn't very active in the waning minutes, with one no call where Bibby looked for a foul at the 0:43 mark. The Lakers averaged roughly 25 free throw attempts per game over the series' first five games. NBA fans felt that it could be the year that Webber and the Kings won the championship. The NBA would much rather send the Lakers over the Kings to the finals for theTVratings and for the profit. And the calls came. Be the first one to comment on this story. From left, Shawn Bradley, Adrian Griffin and Eduardo Najera had a hard time watching the Mavs' playoff run end against the Spurs in the 2003 Western Conference finals. Your login session has expired. The '93 Knicks were the best team of the Ewing era. A few bad calls are excusable; refs are human. L.A. converted only five field goals for the entire quarter. Late in the series clinching Game 6 Wade drove to the basket elbowing Dirk Nowitzki in the face on his way to the basket. This was where the Laker dynasty should have organically ended. 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. Its going to go down as the classic moment in Kings history, he finally said. The Sacramento Kings win the 2002 NBA championship. In 2008, during his sentencing, Donaghys allegations regarding the NBA and the 2002 Western Conference Finals were released through his lawyers in a filing. Ralph Nader, the consumer advocate, weighed in, urging Stern to conduct a review. He went to the free-throw line 15 times. Kobe Bryant started barreling to the basket in hope of calls. The Charlotte Bobcats just had a season where they had the worst winning percentage of any team in NBA history, and itseemed they would at least earn the first pick and get Anthony Davis as their franchise savior. 2002 Western Conference Finals Game 6: The Elbow The Sacramento Kings were in the drivers seat to knocking off a young exciting Los Angeles Lakers team 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. We'll see how this plays out over the rest of the 2012 playoffs, but if LeBron continues to get calls like this, then the conspiracy theorists will get plenty of evidence of the NBA rigging games. I dont know. Here is just some of Beech's rationale for concluding that the game was not likely rigged. And that's never happened, and that's a really big secret to keep if that was true. 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 TOM GOLDMAN: For a while, the Tim Donaghy scandal actually did go away, after the former NBA referee pleaded guilty last year to betting on games and taking payoffs from gamblers. Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw were suspended. Even with the new lottery in place teams still tanked. The Lakers fell to a resurgent San Antonio Spurs team in six games, with inter-team tension between ONeal and Bryant perhaps at its all-time high. Theres no question in my mind that we were the better team. Pollard was a reserve power forward and center for the Kings, a bleach blonde energizer known as much for his candor as for his rebounding. 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. League-preferred being, of course, the result that generates the most revenue. Pollard was traded after the 2003 season. The buzzer sounded and the Lakers won, 100-99. I called it the worst officiated game in NBA history. Additionally, the Lakers wereaveraging25 free throw attempts for the entire series, which is much more than the average team gets to shoot. When the Kings and the Lakers met in the 2003 preseason, the drama picked up right where it left off. He also cited the 2002 Western Conference Finals as the most rigged series in league history. A former referee at the center of a gambling scandal has alleged that NBA referees rigged a 2002 playoff series to force it to seven games. Getting off of the bench. Hundreds of reporters are here for the finals, and many of them descended on two players at yesterday's media sessions. I think referees are instructed on general things. The Detroit Pistons were known around the NBA landscape as the bad boys, and their brand of basketball was physical and blue collar. All rights reserved. The Lakers snatched homecourt advantage in Game 1, but the Kings drew even two days later. Fast forward to around the 5:30 mark. 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. Game 3was the ultimate swing game, and after Game 3most people knew the Knicks were probably going to represent the east in the NBA finals. 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. After an easy 124-113 over the Mavs in Game 1, there was no reason to think things were going to change. The Lakers tied the series and eventually won the championship, and many feel the Pistons were robbed of a title because of a horrendous call in Game 6. This was Phoenix's year. The statistics: 27 free throw attempts in the quarter for the Lakers, against nine for the Kings. 2. Let's take a closer look at what happened in the 2002 Western Conference Finals. @ Los Angeles Lakers. The claim came after the 2002 Western Conference Finals matchup between the LA Lakers and the Sacramento Kings. In Game 4 of the 2007 Western Conference semifinals, Robert Horry checked Steve Nash into the scorer's table in a game that was already decided. Stern has said the report will be made public after Donaghy's sentencing. The Shaquille ONeal and Kobe Bryant-led Lakers were the defending NBA champions, while the Kings, with star Chris Webber and a superb supporting cast, seemed poised for a breakthrough. His flopping was so blatantly obvious that multiple NBA players actually tweeted about it. Donaghy's lawyer isn't commenting. Anyone can read what you share. Even without Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw Phoenix almost beat the Spurs in Game 5 anyway. Donaghy is scheduled to be sentenced on July 14. What people don't remember are the bad calls that led to it. 40 free throws for the Lakers over the course of the game. All of the pieces fit. Accuracy and availability may vary. I wear it and consider it a Celtics/Kings championship ring.. Game over. In its own way, that's worse, but still, I think for the time being we can feel pretty comfortable with the notion that NBA games are least intended to be determined by the players. 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. Dwyane Wade shot 97 free throws in six games, good for a record in any six-game NBA series, only two off of the record for a seven-game series. But what happened in 2007 was completely inexcusable. Having watched it live and seen the replays several times, I can say that it doesn't fade with time. Referee Bob Delaney, Beech found, called the game quite evenly. That is the mark of a true bad call. 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). But the mother ship of NBA conspiracy theories remains Game 6 of the classic 2002 Western Conference Finals between the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers and the upstart Sacramento Kings. 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. Mr. SCOT POLLARD (Basketball Player, Formerly with the Sacramento Kings): Yeah, I felt that way during the game and after the game. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. Trades can also be fixed by the league or vetoed, although it hasnt happened to often. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. This is the first call on this list that feels a little fishy. Kareem makes two free throws, the Lakers win the game and Game 7 and are the '88 champs. Not coincidentally, rules mandating buzzer beaters be reviewed by referees via instant replay were instituted the following season. 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. . Donaghy, a convicted felon for betting on games he officiated and who Stern has insisted was a lone rogue official whose claims about other referees cant be taken seriously, has written at length about the ways he says officials influence games, often to help produce a league-preferred result. According to Fadeaway World, the controversy began in game six of the WCF. The Knicks shot the same number of free throws as times they were called for charging. 1988 NBA finals: The Detroit Pistons cheated out of a championship, 13. This is certainly plausible with Bevotta officiating plenty of Game 6s and 7s (the closing games of a series), which is good evidence for Donaghys claim. Look at the replay again. Indiana was the better team (the Knicks were the No. That's right, they didn't get involved in the fights; they just stepped off of the bench. Kobe Bryant basically punched Mike Bibby in the face without a call. This gets to the heart of the matter to me: despite the NBA's official claim that 95% of calls are correct over a season, there are just too many plays that are far from being clear cut wrong/right and many that fall into a gray area where even watching a play many times in slow motion you can make a case for different verdicts. The series, it seemed, deserved nothing less. Viewed separately, the missed calls of Game 6 can all be understood and forgiven as part of the flow of the game. WebFor more info on the BBALLBREAKDOWN Online Membership: http://bit.ly/BballMemberWhen the Kings and Lakers clashed in the 2002 Western The NBA social media page stirred up some controversy when it revealed on its events page the events taking place May 30 through June 5. Yet a foul was called and Larry Johnson got to shoot a free throw in addition to the three-pointer he just made. In a harbinger of things to come, the Lakers stormed back to cut a 27-point fourth quarter lead in half before the final buzzer sounded. The league suspended Green for his retaliation, but his retaliation wasnt nearly as bad as the aggressor LeBron James's actions in this incident. The bottom-25, and many in the 2002 playoffs, it was time settle. Involving a 2005 playoff series between the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks the most revenue other referees givingthe an!: but yesterday, Pollard said the consumer advocate and perennial Presidential candidate Ralph Nader, the of! 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