Fwd: "What do you want, a badge, or a chest to pin it on?"

[JB <jimmetz@xxxxxxx>]

> 	All eyes will be on the  Zebras  tonight. Both teams, the Heat and 
> the Celtics have to be high on their shit list.
> 	Following the Phoenix game and the fortunately less than serious 
> injury, from the collision with Amare Stoudamire, with no foul called, 
> to Paul Pierce, followed by Jimmy O'Brien's ejection, there was much 
> uproar, followed by a mail, fax, e-mail campaign, to league  
> headquarters, complaining about the officiating in that game.
>
> ''I was as angry as you could possibly get,'' he (Jimmy)said. ''I 
> don't think
> I was deliberating my motives of going out there. I was as angry as I
> have been in coaching since I can remember.''
>
> There were a lot of harsh words thrown to the refs, culminated by 
> Tommy Heinsohn:
>
> "...Tom Heinsohn assailed the referees, calling them
> ridiculous and arrogant. Phoenix shot 33 free throws, Boston nine. "You
> cannot have one team in a pro game shoot 40 free throws and the other 
> shoot
> 10 unless they never go past half-court," Heinsohn said."
>
> 	The assumption here, going by the ref's  own words: "Merry Christmas, 
> Tommy," as they left the arena, was that  the foul shooting 
> discrepancy, was a payback for Tony Battie, kicking the ball at the 
> ref's, during the previous game.
> 	As much as the ref's wanted to teach the Celtics a lesson, as they 
> are probably the most disrespectful and the team most often whistled 
> for technical fouls, the injury to Pierce , gave impetus to a trend, 
> started by Mark Cuban (which cost him heavily in fines), of pointing 
> out, publicly, the inconsistencies of NBA officiating.
> 	We all know there are rookie fouls and Jordan rules. No one can deny 
> it, but no one has ever called it to  public attention as articulately 
> and perhaps persuasively, as icon; Pat Riley. He builds a great case 
> for his complaints:
>
> ''This is really the bottom line for me: When I was coaching teams 
> that had a lot of talent and I coached against teams that were 
> perceived to be bad, I knew that I had an edge without having to say 
> anything,'' Riley said. ``I just felt it with Magic [Johnson] and 
> Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar]. It's like a cushion that you have, a 
> subconscious, psychological cushion. We're right now perceived to be a 
> bad team. I know now that I'm on the other side of it, and I feel > it.''
> ''I hardly ever speak out or complain about [officiating],'' he said. 
> ``But this is too compelling, and it has to be addressed and it's 
> going to be addressed.''
> "Riley said he spoke with NBA administrators Saturday but would not 
> divulge details. He said he wants to present his case to the league in 
> person.
> ''I'm going to talk to the league about it and try to talk to them 
> about what we have studied and I want to know why,'' Riley said. 
> ``They'll see it right in front of me. I hope I can meet with them and 
> go over it myself.''
> Riley intends to present statistical and visual evidence of what he 
> believes is unfair officiating against Miami. Entering Saturday's game 
> against the Golden State Warriors, the Heat had shot 392 free throws 
> to opponents' 611 -- the highest differential in the league."
> 	
> 	Perhaps  the referee's arrogance will backfire on them. Following a 
> brutal call in the waning minutes of a recent Jazz game, normally mild 
> mannered Utah fans, threw bottles and other debris, on the retreating 
> ref's. This is not a South American soccer crowd. Salt Lake City has 
> long been known for it's decorum and sober fans.
> 	The game in question also prompted Utah's coach, Norm Sloan, to jump 
> into the controversy.
>
> "Riley, Sloan and Heinsohn said what players and coaches want from 
> officials
> is consistency, though it is unlikely they will ever fully get it."
>
> 	Is the league concerned?
>
> 	"Some of the incidents that have happened over the last few days 
> concern me
> because they're not good for the game of basketball and not good for 
> the
> NBA," said Stu Jackson, senior vice president of NBA basketball 
> operations."
> 	
> Is Riley concerned any grudge on the part of officials will grow?
>
> ''I hope it doesn't,'' Riley said. ``If it does, then it's really a 
> bad situation. I think everybody has the right to try and protect 
> their game, their franchise.''
>
> 	From my seat, the referees will understand that there may never have 
> been a game, since the Lakers-Kings game seven, where they will be 
> watched so closely. Will it affect the outcome? You bet! How? Well, if 
> I had to guess, we will see one of the closest called games of all 
> time. Every violation will be whistled. We will see traveling, 
> palming, zone violations and more fouls than that on a windy day at 
> Candlestick Park.
> 	If I'm correct, it will be a long game and this aspect will not favor 
> the Celtics, as they are much more vulnerable, to having their stars 
> hit with a lot of early fouls, as well as having that short fuse and 
> tendency to get technicals.
> 	The zebras will have to show who's in  charge, but they will have to 
> do it by the book.
>
> 	
> 		JB
>
> 	Unchain My Heart !
>
> Quotations used were taken from the "Boston Globe," "ESPN," "USA 
> Today" and "The Miami Herald."