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Mavs say officiating in Lakers-Wolves game suspect
Nelson says bias doesn't lead to errors; players say calls went LA's way
04/26/2003
By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News
PORTLAND, Ore. – Mark Cuban is the No. 1 watchdog when it comes to critiquing NBA referees, and he can expect a lot of support in that endeavor from a pack of angry Wolves.
The Minnesota Timberwolves were the victim of some of the most blatant officiating blunders in recent memory in Game 3 of their first-round series against the three-time NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers.
The Mavericks, like the rest of the crowd watching the game that started Thursday night and ended early Friday morning, saw it.
And just like everybody else, they had a hard time believing it.
Mavericks players were disheartened by the string of controversial calls, all of which went for the Lakers and against the Timberwolves in a game Minnesota eventually won, 114-110, in overtime. None wanted to attach their names to comments. But several players called it "a sad situation." One said "it really gives the league a black eye."
And they said they could understand how fans would suspect that a string of poor judgment calls by the referee crew of Bill Spooner, Leroy Richardson and Ronnie Nunn was because the Lakers were getting preferential treatment.
Coach Don Nelson doesn't think there's any basis to that train of thought. But he agrees that the referees have good and bad days, just like everybody else.
"First of all, they're trying to do a good job," Nelson said. "Sometimes, you know, it doesn't look that way.
"But they're honest, they're trustworthy and they're trying to do their jobs. Sometimes you have to wonder why this is called and that isn't called. Maybe it looks sometimes like one team has an advantage because of the calls, but that's just the nature of the game."
At issue in the Minnesota game were a handful of questionable calls. The most visible was a foul called on Wally Szczerbiak, who was practically in a different zip code when he was whistled for fouling LA's Jannero Pargo on a drive to the basket.
There also was a foul called when Kobe Bryant was shooting a 3-point shot, which led to a 4-point play that gave the Lakers a chance to force overtime. Kevin Garnett was called for his sixth foul at the start of overtime when contact was minimal.
Cuban, of course, is the most vocal person in the league when it comes to questioning the abilities of referees. He saw the crew in Game 2 of the Mavs-Blazers series have difficulties in the fourth quarter. Bennett Salvatore, Joe Forte and Ted Bernhardt missed several calls, including Steve Nash's foot being on the line when he was awarded a 3-point field goal with 29.7 seconds to go.
After that game, Cuban railed on the crew, particularly Salvatore.
But, as Nelson said, the cause of referees making poor calls is more a case of ineptitude rather than having an agenda. Referees don't care who wins. But they do have to learn the nuances of players as well as coaches.
"We make mistakes as players and coaches, and so do they," Nelson said. "Our players are smart. They try to put them [referees] in a bind. They flop. We teach it.
"We want it to be a hard job. So we can't complain if they make an error and somebody gets a flop. They are our policemen."
But after the fiasco in Los Angeles, whistle-blowers might be coming out of the woodwork.
E-mail
esefko@dallasnews.com