Official throws basketball at fan in Game 2

[dirt_dobber]

Didn't know if anyone else saw this happen.... ESPN replayed just the part where the man was escorted
away. They didn't show the whole situation....The Fan is a CEO of a major company.

Official throws basketball at fan in Game 2
http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/b...icleid=1255835

ORLANDO, Fla. - Players were not the only ones getting physical on the Amway Arena court. The NBA will review a confrontation between veteran referee Joe DeRosa and a fan that occurred at halftime.

Referees DeRosa, Marc Davis and Bill Kennedy walked to the scorer’s table at midcourt after the second quarter to retrieve their jackets to a chorus of boos and fans chanting "Refs you suck."

One fan, Wyndham Vacation Ownership CEO Franz Hanning, heckled the refs from behind the scorer’s table and DeRosa threw a ball at Hanning, who then threw it back at DeRosa.

DeRosa called over Amway Arena security officials, who relocated the fan to another seat. DeRosa has officiated over 1,000 regular season games and 75 playoff games and five NBA Finals according to basketballrefs.com.

NBA spokesman Tim Frank, who attended the game, told The Orlando Sentinel that the league was aware of the situation, which was replayed on ESPN’s telecast.

"The situation will be reviewed after the game," Frank said.

Hanning, 55, is an Orlando resident and an acquaintance of Boston Celtics [team stats] coach Doc Rivers.

[mac222b]

more proof, as if needed, that the NBA refs do, indeed, Suck.

[tcat075]

classy move ref

[dirt_dobber]

DeRosa suspended without pay
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playof...ory?id=5205954

NEW YORK -- Referee Joe DeRosa has been suspended without pay for throwing a ball at a fan during halftime of an NBA playoff game in Orlando.

DeRosa will miss the next game he would have been scheduled to work.

At halftime of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals between the Magic and Boston Celtics, DeRosa was walking to the scorer's table to get the warm-up jackets for his crew.

A fan behind the table approached DeRosa, gesturing with his arms and appearing to be shouting at the veteran official. DeRosa flipped the game ball to the fan, who tossed it back.