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Well after watching the Jazz and Laker games as of late thought it would be fun to take a look at the very lengthy history of NBA conspiracy theories
I can understand if you don't want to read them all .. maybe just do a glance over
Source: WIKI
Some NBA fans have accused the league of conspiring to have large-market teams and popular players succeed in the postseason. Since 1980, every NBA Finals has involved at least one of the following teams: Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, or San Antonio Spurs. Additionally, in that span, every NBA Finals has involved at least one of the following ten players: Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Isiah Thomas, Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, or Lebron James. Furthermore, from 1980 to 2010, at least one of the following 7 head coaches were involved in every Finals: Billy Cunningham, Bill Fitch, Pat Riley, Chuck Daly, Phil Jackson, Rudy Tomjanovich, or Gregg Popovich.
Many of these accusations are based on the premise that the NBA desires large markets and popular players for ratings purposes. Former CBS Sports president Neal Pilson disputes the idea that matchups have the biggest effect on ratings:
“ Ratings are a factor, but the 'conspiracy theory' misses the whole point. It has nothing to do with a great matchup, it has to do with the total number of games. NBC would trade a great matchup that's a sweep in a flash for a bad match up that goes seven games. ”
Bucks-Sixers 2001 Eastern Conference Finals
“ It behooves everybody for the league to make more money, and the league knows that Philadelphia is going to make more money with L.A. than we would with L.A. ”
—Milwaukee Bucks star Ray Allen, before Game 6 of the 2001 Eastern Conference Finals.
In 2001, the Milwaukee Bucks played the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference Finals. The small-market Bucks (who had not even been featured on NBC that year prior to the second round of the Playoffs) did not have any "big-time" stars, with the exception of Ray Allen (who, despite being popular, was not in the upper-echelon of NBA players in terms of endorsements). Their opponent that year, the 76ers had the polarizing and popular Allen Iverson, who had a multitude of shoe deals and mainstream recognition. The Sixers also featured that year's winners of the MVP award in Iverson,[40] Defensive Player of the Year award in Dikembe Mutumbo,[41] Sixth Man of the Year award in Aaron McKie,[42] and Coach of the Year award in Larry Brown.[43]
The series had several calls deemed dubious by the Bucks and their fans. Glenn Robinson, Sam Cassell and George Karl joined Allen in complaining about the officiating and hinting that the league was against them. Karl and Allen were both fined for their comments.[39] In Game 6 of the tensely fought series, Bucks forward Scott Williams threw an elbow at Iverson and was subsequently suspended for the deciding Game 7. After the Bucks lost Game 7 on the road, Sports Illustrated columnist Marty Burns insinuated that the suspension may have been a form of payback by the league:
“ Williams' elbow to Iverson's chin warranted the flagrant 2 ruling, which kept Williams out of Game 7, but the Bucks' public airing of such potentially damaging charges to the NBA probably didn't help their case. ”
Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals
The 2002 Western Conference Final between the Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers was one of the most memorable in league history. The popular (though small-market) Kings led the two-time defending NBA champion Lakers three games to two heading into Game 6 at Staples Center, a game which would prove to be the most infamous of the series. The game, which the Lakers won by four, featured several disputable calls, including a late game non-call involving Mike Bibby--after he was bleeding from being elbowed in the nose by Kobe Bryant. This game was the epitome of the major issue in the series. Both teams complained about the officiating at different points in the series (the Kings in Game 6 and the Lakers in Games 2 and 5). Quoting then-ESPN basketball analyst David Aldridge:
“ There is nothing I can say that will explain 27 free throws for the Lakers in the fourth quarter – an amount staggering in its volume and impact on the game. It gave me pause. How can you explain it? How can you explain a game where Scot Pollard fouls out when he's two feet from Shaquille O'Neal, or that Doug Christie is called for a ridiculous touch foul just as Chris Webber spikes Bryant's drive to the hoop, or that Mike Bibby is called for a foul deep in the fourth quarter after Bryant pops him in the nose with an elbow? ”
(sic - it was a non-call, not a foul on Bibby)
Former presidential candidate Ralph Nader weighed in on the series, voicing his displeasure with the officiating:
“ At a time when the public's confidence is shaken by headlines reporting the breach of trust by corporate executives, it is important... for there to be maintained a sense of impartiality and professionalism in commercial sports performances... That sense was severely shaken in the now notorious officiating during Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings... When (Washington Post writer Michael) Wilbon writes that ‘The Kings and Lakers didn't decide this series ...three referees did..’ when many thousands of fans, not just those in Sacramento, felt that merit lost to bad refereeing, you need to take notice beyond the usual and widespread grumbling by fans and columnists about referees ignoring the rule book and giving advantages to home teams and superstars.[46] ”
The Kings would go on to lose Game 7 of the series at home. Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy filed in court papers in 2008 said that Game 6 was fixed by the NBA. NBA Commissioner David Stern denies allegations against Donaghy. Lawrence Pedowitz, who led a review of the league's officiating following the outbreak of the scandal, concluded that, while Game 6 was poorly officiated, no concrete evidence existed of that game being fixed.[47]
Accusation from Jeff Van Gundy
During a 2005 playoff series against the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy was fined a record amount for a coach, $100,000, for asserting that he had a source within the league who informed him that the referees were being instructed to call more fouls on Yao Ming, due to protests by Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.[48]
2006 NBA Finals - Dallas vs. Miami
The 2006 NBA Finals came the year after a series that saw the second-lowest ratings in NBA Finals history. After the Detroit Pistons and the small-market San Antonio Spurs slugged it out in a seven-game series, the 2006 finals was considered more attractive because it featured the relatively large market Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks and superstars Dirk Nowitzki, Dwyane Wade, and Shaquille O'Neal.
With the series tied at two games apiece, Game 5 was pivotal. On the final possession in overtime, Wade received an inbounds pass from mid court. Because Wade had already been in the front court prior to the inbounds of the ball, some argue that he should have been ruled ineligible to receive the pass in the backcourt and the Heat should have been called for a backcourt violation. After receiving the ball, Wade went on to drive to the basket, drawing a foul on Nowitzki. Replays would reveal that Nowitzki barely touched Wade, further angering Mavericks fans. However, the replay also showed Mavericks' guard Devin Harris grabbing Wade's arm. In between Wade's free throws, Maverick Josh Howard looked to coach Avery Johnson to see if he wanted to call for time. Howard made a timeout gesture towards his coach; referee Joe Derosa saw and charged Dallas with their final timeout.
Without a timeout, the Mavericks were forced to inbound from full court after Wade hit his second free throw. Unable to get off a shot from inside of half court as time expired, the Mavericks lost the game and the series two nights later. Game 5 had 38 fouls called against the Mavericks with only 26 against the Heat. The Mavericks shot 25 free throws as the Heat shot 49. After Game 5, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was livid; he was quoted by The Miami Herald as screaming at David Stern that "[his] league is rigged". Cuban denied that accusation,and went on to write:
“ Any prudent, rational person can easily see it. The games are not rigged. Thats a complete insult to the players on the court and the incredible amount of effort they put into preparing for and playing the games. All 82 regular season and post season games. The NBA couldn't rig the games if it wanted to. And it doesn't want to. Its that simple. ”
Despite his denial, Cuban was fined $250,000 by the league, not for his alleged comments, but for general "acts of misconduct" following the game.
In Game 6, Wade shot a total of 25 free throws, equaling the entire Mavericks team total.
Bulls-Celtics 2009 Eastern Conference First Round
During a 2009 playoff series between the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls, many Bulls fans felt that the referees were favoring the Celtics. In Game 5, Celtics guard Rajon Rondo made hard contact with the face of Bulls' center Brad Miller, with just 2 seconds left in overtime with the Celtics leading by two. Earlier in Game 5, Rondo tripped Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich, forcing Hinrich to get stitches to close the resulting wounds from being tripped. The hit on Miller left him with a bleeding mouth, but because the foul was ruled a personal foul, Miller had to shoot the free throws, or he would not have been allowed to return, and the Celtics would pick the replacement shooter. Had the foul been ruled a flagrant, the Bulls would have been able to pick the replacement shooter. Miller would miss the first free throw, and then had to miss the second on purpose to give Bulls a chance to tie the game, but the free throw did not hit the rim and the Celtics got possession and ran out the clock. Rondo admitted after the game that he did not have a play on the ball.
In Game 6, near the end of the first quarter, Rondo threw Hinrich into the scorer's table in a fashion similar to Robert Horry's body slam of Steve Nash 2 years earlier. Rondo was assessed a flagrant 1, which allowed for him to stay in the game, rather than a flagrant 2 which would have meant an ejection (which was Horry's punishment for his similar foul). Furthermore, after both games, the league reviewed the incidents in question and decided not to suspend Rondo or upgrade the fouls, while Horry's body slam earned him a 2-game suspension. Meanwhile, Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard was suspended for Game 6 of the Magic's series vs. the Philadelphia 76ers after the league reviewed tape of him elbowing Sixers center Samuel Dalembert in the head in Game 5. It was ruled a technical on the floor, but after review, the league upgraded the foul to a flagrant 2.
NBA Draft
The 1985 NBA Draft was the first to use the NBA Draft Lottery. Prior to that year, the team with the worst record in the NBA would get the first pick in the draft (as is done in the National Football League). The Golden State Warriors, which represent the San Francisco Bay Area, finished with the worst record in the NBA during the 1984–85 season and would have had the first draft choice under the previous system. That year, Georgetown center Patrick Ewing was the favorite to be the number one pick in the draft.
The lottery was established out of concern that the Houston Rockets had been intentionally playing poorly in order to draft the best players.
During this live televised draft lottery ceremony, the league used a system where sealed envelopes representing the teams with the worst records were mixed in a tumbler, and then drawn by NBA Commissioner David Stern one at a time to determine which of these clubs would get the 1st pick onwards. However, when these envelopes were added to the tumbler, two envelopes were put in forcibly and banged against the edge, bending their corners, while all the rest of the envelopes were set in gently. When drawing for the 1st pick, Stern went for the one with a bent corner, which upon opening the envelope, it was revealed that the New York Knicks logo was inside. The large-market New York Knicks, who finished with the third-worst record in the league that season, eventually used the 1st pick to draft Ewing with (who would become a legend on the team, leading the Knicks to the 1994 NBA Finals. Although the Knicks reached the 1999 NBA Finals, Ewing was injured.). Nevertheless, the "bent envelope" fueled speculation that the league staged the result.
The New Orleans Hornets won the rights to the first overall selection in the 2012 draft. The Hornets were a league-owned team at the time, leading to continued conspiracy theories about the lottery process.
Accusations of network bias
During its twelve-year run of covering the NBA, NBC Sports televised a substantial number of games featuring the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers. In the prime-time slot, from 5:30 p.m EST to 8:00 p.m EST, NBC aired games almost exclusively featuring New York, Chicago or Los Angeles (incidentally, those three cities are the top three television markets in the United States, and have been historically the three most populous cities). Several fans and media analysts viewed this as favoritism,[58] and fans of teams like the Houston Rockets who, despite being a large market (and Houston being the USA's fourth most populous city), being the dominant team in the early-to-mid-1990s, winning the title in 1994 and 1995, and featuring a superstar in Hakeem Olajuwon, were not featured on NBC at the level of the other three teams, felt as if they were being snubbed.[59][60]
The perceived bias could be explained by the fact that, from 1990 to 2002 (NBC's run of covering the NBA), the Bulls, Lakers and Knicks played in six, four and two NBA Finals respectively, every Finals featuring one or more of those teams except 1995, when the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic to win their second consecutive NBA championship. Until 1998, the Chicago Bulls were a dominant team, and during the early to mid-1990s, the New York Knicks were also in the NBA's elite. From 1997 to 2002, the Los Angeles Lakers also joined the ranks of the best in the NBA. The teams' dominance, combined with the fact that they played in major media markets, led to their being featured more often than other teams.
New game ball
After the 2005–06 season, David Stern announced that the league would use a new microfiber ball for the 2006–07 season. The microfiber ball replaced the previously used leather balls. The league claimed the new ball would provide better grip than the leather counterparts, especially when wet from player's sweat. Still the majority of players (notably Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash) expressed dislike for the new ball, saying among other things that it became slippery when wet, bounced awkwardly and gave players cuts.
The largest complaint came from the fact that players had not been consulted before the new ball was put into play. The NBA Players Association filed an unfair labor practice lawsuit against the league because of that fact,subsequently dropping it after the league announced that it would revert to the leather balls starting on January 1, 2007. In a humorous move, the Washington Wizards played a video on the Verizon Center scoreboard welcoming back the "new old ball". Despite complaints, scoring and field goal percentage went up while the microfiber ball was used.Some individual players, however, including Chicago Bulls guard Ben Gordon and then Seattle SuperSonics guard Ray Allen, saw their usually high three-point shooting percentages decline.
A more rigorous study found that while shooting percentages did in fact increase, so did turnover rates.
In the aftermath, Commissioner Stern now says that players will have more input on future decisions.
Referee gambling scandal
In July 2007, it was reported that the FBI was investigating a referee, Tim Donaghy, for gambling on NBA games. In 2008, Donaghy plead guilty to two federal charges and was sentenced to 15 months in prison.
Gilbert Arenas gun incident
On December 24, 2009, it was revealed that Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards had admitted to storing unloaded firearms in his locker at Verizon Center and had surrendered them to team security. In doing so, Arenas not only violated NBA rules against bringing firearms into an arena, but also violated D.C. ordinances as well. On January 1, 2010, it was also reported that Arenas and teammate Javaris Crittenton had unloaded guns in the Wizards' locker room during a Christmas Eve argument regarding gambling debts. The D.C. Metropolitan Police and the U.S. Attorney's office began investigating,and on January 14, 2010, Arenas was charged with carrying a pistol without a license, a violation of Washington D.C.'s gun-control laws.Arenas pleaded guilty on January 15 to the felony of carrying an unlicensed pistol outside a home or business. His sentencing hearing was scheduled for March 26.
On January 6, 2010, the NBA suspended Arenas indefinitely without pay until its investigation was complete. NBA Commissioner David Stern said in a statement that "his ongoing conduct has led me to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game." By nearly all accounts, Stern felt compelled to act when Arenas' teammates surrounded him during pregame introductions prior to a game with the Philadelphia 76ers and he pretended to shoot them with guns made from his fingers.The Wizards issued a statement of their own condemning the players' pregame stunt as "unacceptable."On January 27, 2010, Arenas and Crittenton were suspended for the rest of the season, after meeting with Stern.
I can understand if you don't want to read them all .. maybe just do a glance over
Source: WIKI
Some NBA fans have accused the league of conspiring to have large-market teams and popular players succeed in the postseason. Since 1980, every NBA Finals has involved at least one of the following teams: Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, or San Antonio Spurs. Additionally, in that span, every NBA Finals has involved at least one of the following ten players: Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Isiah Thomas, Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, or Lebron James. Furthermore, from 1980 to 2010, at least one of the following 7 head coaches were involved in every Finals: Billy Cunningham, Bill Fitch, Pat Riley, Chuck Daly, Phil Jackson, Rudy Tomjanovich, or Gregg Popovich.
Many of these accusations are based on the premise that the NBA desires large markets and popular players for ratings purposes. Former CBS Sports president Neal Pilson disputes the idea that matchups have the biggest effect on ratings:
“ Ratings are a factor, but the 'conspiracy theory' misses the whole point. It has nothing to do with a great matchup, it has to do with the total number of games. NBC would trade a great matchup that's a sweep in a flash for a bad match up that goes seven games. ”
Bucks-Sixers 2001 Eastern Conference Finals
“ It behooves everybody for the league to make more money, and the league knows that Philadelphia is going to make more money with L.A. than we would with L.A. ”
—Milwaukee Bucks star Ray Allen, before Game 6 of the 2001 Eastern Conference Finals.
In 2001, the Milwaukee Bucks played the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference Finals. The small-market Bucks (who had not even been featured on NBC that year prior to the second round of the Playoffs) did not have any "big-time" stars, with the exception of Ray Allen (who, despite being popular, was not in the upper-echelon of NBA players in terms of endorsements). Their opponent that year, the 76ers had the polarizing and popular Allen Iverson, who had a multitude of shoe deals and mainstream recognition. The Sixers also featured that year's winners of the MVP award in Iverson,[40] Defensive Player of the Year award in Dikembe Mutumbo,[41] Sixth Man of the Year award in Aaron McKie,[42] and Coach of the Year award in Larry Brown.[43]
The series had several calls deemed dubious by the Bucks and their fans. Glenn Robinson, Sam Cassell and George Karl joined Allen in complaining about the officiating and hinting that the league was against them. Karl and Allen were both fined for their comments.[39] In Game 6 of the tensely fought series, Bucks forward Scott Williams threw an elbow at Iverson and was subsequently suspended for the deciding Game 7. After the Bucks lost Game 7 on the road, Sports Illustrated columnist Marty Burns insinuated that the suspension may have been a form of payback by the league:
“ Williams' elbow to Iverson's chin warranted the flagrant 2 ruling, which kept Williams out of Game 7, but the Bucks' public airing of such potentially damaging charges to the NBA probably didn't help their case. ”
Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals
The 2002 Western Conference Final between the Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers was one of the most memorable in league history. The popular (though small-market) Kings led the two-time defending NBA champion Lakers three games to two heading into Game 6 at Staples Center, a game which would prove to be the most infamous of the series. The game, which the Lakers won by four, featured several disputable calls, including a late game non-call involving Mike Bibby--after he was bleeding from being elbowed in the nose by Kobe Bryant. This game was the epitome of the major issue in the series. Both teams complained about the officiating at different points in the series (the Kings in Game 6 and the Lakers in Games 2 and 5). Quoting then-ESPN basketball analyst David Aldridge:
“ There is nothing I can say that will explain 27 free throws for the Lakers in the fourth quarter – an amount staggering in its volume and impact on the game. It gave me pause. How can you explain it? How can you explain a game where Scot Pollard fouls out when he's two feet from Shaquille O'Neal, or that Doug Christie is called for a ridiculous touch foul just as Chris Webber spikes Bryant's drive to the hoop, or that Mike Bibby is called for a foul deep in the fourth quarter after Bryant pops him in the nose with an elbow? ”
(sic - it was a non-call, not a foul on Bibby)
Former presidential candidate Ralph Nader weighed in on the series, voicing his displeasure with the officiating:
“ At a time when the public's confidence is shaken by headlines reporting the breach of trust by corporate executives, it is important... for there to be maintained a sense of impartiality and professionalism in commercial sports performances... That sense was severely shaken in the now notorious officiating during Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings... When (Washington Post writer Michael) Wilbon writes that ‘The Kings and Lakers didn't decide this series ...three referees did..’ when many thousands of fans, not just those in Sacramento, felt that merit lost to bad refereeing, you need to take notice beyond the usual and widespread grumbling by fans and columnists about referees ignoring the rule book and giving advantages to home teams and superstars.[46] ”
The Kings would go on to lose Game 7 of the series at home. Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy filed in court papers in 2008 said that Game 6 was fixed by the NBA. NBA Commissioner David Stern denies allegations against Donaghy. Lawrence Pedowitz, who led a review of the league's officiating following the outbreak of the scandal, concluded that, while Game 6 was poorly officiated, no concrete evidence existed of that game being fixed.[47]
Accusation from Jeff Van Gundy
During a 2005 playoff series against the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy was fined a record amount for a coach, $100,000, for asserting that he had a source within the league who informed him that the referees were being instructed to call more fouls on Yao Ming, due to protests by Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.[48]
2006 NBA Finals - Dallas vs. Miami
The 2006 NBA Finals came the year after a series that saw the second-lowest ratings in NBA Finals history. After the Detroit Pistons and the small-market San Antonio Spurs slugged it out in a seven-game series, the 2006 finals was considered more attractive because it featured the relatively large market Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks and superstars Dirk Nowitzki, Dwyane Wade, and Shaquille O'Neal.
With the series tied at two games apiece, Game 5 was pivotal. On the final possession in overtime, Wade received an inbounds pass from mid court. Because Wade had already been in the front court prior to the inbounds of the ball, some argue that he should have been ruled ineligible to receive the pass in the backcourt and the Heat should have been called for a backcourt violation. After receiving the ball, Wade went on to drive to the basket, drawing a foul on Nowitzki. Replays would reveal that Nowitzki barely touched Wade, further angering Mavericks fans. However, the replay also showed Mavericks' guard Devin Harris grabbing Wade's arm. In between Wade's free throws, Maverick Josh Howard looked to coach Avery Johnson to see if he wanted to call for time. Howard made a timeout gesture towards his coach; referee Joe Derosa saw and charged Dallas with their final timeout.
Without a timeout, the Mavericks were forced to inbound from full court after Wade hit his second free throw. Unable to get off a shot from inside of half court as time expired, the Mavericks lost the game and the series two nights later. Game 5 had 38 fouls called against the Mavericks with only 26 against the Heat. The Mavericks shot 25 free throws as the Heat shot 49. After Game 5, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was livid; he was quoted by The Miami Herald as screaming at David Stern that "[his] league is rigged". Cuban denied that accusation,and went on to write:
“ Any prudent, rational person can easily see it. The games are not rigged. Thats a complete insult to the players on the court and the incredible amount of effort they put into preparing for and playing the games. All 82 regular season and post season games. The NBA couldn't rig the games if it wanted to. And it doesn't want to. Its that simple. ”
Despite his denial, Cuban was fined $250,000 by the league, not for his alleged comments, but for general "acts of misconduct" following the game.
In Game 6, Wade shot a total of 25 free throws, equaling the entire Mavericks team total.
Bulls-Celtics 2009 Eastern Conference First Round
During a 2009 playoff series between the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls, many Bulls fans felt that the referees were favoring the Celtics. In Game 5, Celtics guard Rajon Rondo made hard contact with the face of Bulls' center Brad Miller, with just 2 seconds left in overtime with the Celtics leading by two. Earlier in Game 5, Rondo tripped Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich, forcing Hinrich to get stitches to close the resulting wounds from being tripped. The hit on Miller left him with a bleeding mouth, but because the foul was ruled a personal foul, Miller had to shoot the free throws, or he would not have been allowed to return, and the Celtics would pick the replacement shooter. Had the foul been ruled a flagrant, the Bulls would have been able to pick the replacement shooter. Miller would miss the first free throw, and then had to miss the second on purpose to give Bulls a chance to tie the game, but the free throw did not hit the rim and the Celtics got possession and ran out the clock. Rondo admitted after the game that he did not have a play on the ball.
In Game 6, near the end of the first quarter, Rondo threw Hinrich into the scorer's table in a fashion similar to Robert Horry's body slam of Steve Nash 2 years earlier. Rondo was assessed a flagrant 1, which allowed for him to stay in the game, rather than a flagrant 2 which would have meant an ejection (which was Horry's punishment for his similar foul). Furthermore, after both games, the league reviewed the incidents in question and decided not to suspend Rondo or upgrade the fouls, while Horry's body slam earned him a 2-game suspension. Meanwhile, Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard was suspended for Game 6 of the Magic's series vs. the Philadelphia 76ers after the league reviewed tape of him elbowing Sixers center Samuel Dalembert in the head in Game 5. It was ruled a technical on the floor, but after review, the league upgraded the foul to a flagrant 2.
NBA Draft
The 1985 NBA Draft was the first to use the NBA Draft Lottery. Prior to that year, the team with the worst record in the NBA would get the first pick in the draft (as is done in the National Football League). The Golden State Warriors, which represent the San Francisco Bay Area, finished with the worst record in the NBA during the 1984–85 season and would have had the first draft choice under the previous system. That year, Georgetown center Patrick Ewing was the favorite to be the number one pick in the draft.
The lottery was established out of concern that the Houston Rockets had been intentionally playing poorly in order to draft the best players.
During this live televised draft lottery ceremony, the league used a system where sealed envelopes representing the teams with the worst records were mixed in a tumbler, and then drawn by NBA Commissioner David Stern one at a time to determine which of these clubs would get the 1st pick onwards. However, when these envelopes were added to the tumbler, two envelopes were put in forcibly and banged against the edge, bending their corners, while all the rest of the envelopes were set in gently. When drawing for the 1st pick, Stern went for the one with a bent corner, which upon opening the envelope, it was revealed that the New York Knicks logo was inside. The large-market New York Knicks, who finished with the third-worst record in the league that season, eventually used the 1st pick to draft Ewing with (who would become a legend on the team, leading the Knicks to the 1994 NBA Finals. Although the Knicks reached the 1999 NBA Finals, Ewing was injured.). Nevertheless, the "bent envelope" fueled speculation that the league staged the result.
The New Orleans Hornets won the rights to the first overall selection in the 2012 draft. The Hornets were a league-owned team at the time, leading to continued conspiracy theories about the lottery process.
Accusations of network bias
During its twelve-year run of covering the NBA, NBC Sports televised a substantial number of games featuring the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers. In the prime-time slot, from 5:30 p.m EST to 8:00 p.m EST, NBC aired games almost exclusively featuring New York, Chicago or Los Angeles (incidentally, those three cities are the top three television markets in the United States, and have been historically the three most populous cities). Several fans and media analysts viewed this as favoritism,[58] and fans of teams like the Houston Rockets who, despite being a large market (and Houston being the USA's fourth most populous city), being the dominant team in the early-to-mid-1990s, winning the title in 1994 and 1995, and featuring a superstar in Hakeem Olajuwon, were not featured on NBC at the level of the other three teams, felt as if they were being snubbed.[59][60]
The perceived bias could be explained by the fact that, from 1990 to 2002 (NBC's run of covering the NBA), the Bulls, Lakers and Knicks played in six, four and two NBA Finals respectively, every Finals featuring one or more of those teams except 1995, when the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic to win their second consecutive NBA championship. Until 1998, the Chicago Bulls were a dominant team, and during the early to mid-1990s, the New York Knicks were also in the NBA's elite. From 1997 to 2002, the Los Angeles Lakers also joined the ranks of the best in the NBA. The teams' dominance, combined with the fact that they played in major media markets, led to their being featured more often than other teams.
New game ball
After the 2005–06 season, David Stern announced that the league would use a new microfiber ball for the 2006–07 season. The microfiber ball replaced the previously used leather balls. The league claimed the new ball would provide better grip than the leather counterparts, especially when wet from player's sweat. Still the majority of players (notably Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash) expressed dislike for the new ball, saying among other things that it became slippery when wet, bounced awkwardly and gave players cuts.
The largest complaint came from the fact that players had not been consulted before the new ball was put into play. The NBA Players Association filed an unfair labor practice lawsuit against the league because of that fact,subsequently dropping it after the league announced that it would revert to the leather balls starting on January 1, 2007. In a humorous move, the Washington Wizards played a video on the Verizon Center scoreboard welcoming back the "new old ball". Despite complaints, scoring and field goal percentage went up while the microfiber ball was used.Some individual players, however, including Chicago Bulls guard Ben Gordon and then Seattle SuperSonics guard Ray Allen, saw their usually high three-point shooting percentages decline.
A more rigorous study found that while shooting percentages did in fact increase, so did turnover rates.
In the aftermath, Commissioner Stern now says that players will have more input on future decisions.
Referee gambling scandal
In July 2007, it was reported that the FBI was investigating a referee, Tim Donaghy, for gambling on NBA games. In 2008, Donaghy plead guilty to two federal charges and was sentenced to 15 months in prison.
Gilbert Arenas gun incident
On December 24, 2009, it was revealed that Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards had admitted to storing unloaded firearms in his locker at Verizon Center and had surrendered them to team security. In doing so, Arenas not only violated NBA rules against bringing firearms into an arena, but also violated D.C. ordinances as well. On January 1, 2010, it was also reported that Arenas and teammate Javaris Crittenton had unloaded guns in the Wizards' locker room during a Christmas Eve argument regarding gambling debts. The D.C. Metropolitan Police and the U.S. Attorney's office began investigating,and on January 14, 2010, Arenas was charged with carrying a pistol without a license, a violation of Washington D.C.'s gun-control laws.Arenas pleaded guilty on January 15 to the felony of carrying an unlicensed pistol outside a home or business. His sentencing hearing was scheduled for March 26.
On January 6, 2010, the NBA suspended Arenas indefinitely without pay until its investigation was complete. NBA Commissioner David Stern said in a statement that "his ongoing conduct has led me to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game." By nearly all accounts, Stern felt compelled to act when Arenas' teammates surrounded him during pregame introductions prior to a game with the Philadelphia 76ers and he pretended to shoot them with guns made from his fingers.The Wizards issued a statement of their own condemning the players' pregame stunt as "unacceptable."On January 27, 2010, Arenas and Crittenton were suspended for the rest of the season, after meeting with Stern.
