All season, the NBA’s officiating has been a problem.
We’ve seen players like Fred VanVleet complain about it.
We’ve seen coaches complain about it.
In a season filled with brutal moments, last night might have been the worst example of this issue.
I’m not just talking about that Mavs play.
As always, perspective is important.
Some of these screw ups don’t excuse the losing team from losing in every case.
Sure, it stinks the Mavs lost by 1 point.
They also had an entire quarter to play defense.
Play some defense and this screw up (?)
doesn’t even matter.
Lakers vs Suns
You know who the NBA wants in the Play In/Playoffs?
The Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron James.
It doesn’t exactly take a rocket scientist to figure that out.
So, in a game they have to win against the Suns, who do they assign?
Hm, who is the one who always seems to find himself working these types of games?
Ah yes, Scott Foster.
Do we thinkhe made an impact in this game?
Listen, there are things that contribute to FT numbers.
Your offensive approach is a good place to start.
When you do something like that, seeing a 46-20 FT difference is a little fishy.
It’s almost as if they don’t care about hiding it, which is an issue.
Knicks vs Heat
The Knicks are having a really good season.
Not just by Knicks standards, but by any team in the league standards.
You know, the game the Heat won 127-120.
So why am I mentioning this game?
There is simply no debating that Jimmy changes his pivot foot, which you know….you might’t do.
The point is these are plays that in those moments, you cannot miss.
Especially in a game between two teams that are fighting with each other for playoff positioning.
Maybe the Knicks go quick for a 2 for 1.
Maybe they hit a 3PM again on that possession.
Watch Saddiq Bey on that offensive rebound.
Pretty clear that Taurean Prince makes contact before the final buzzer.
Was that a mistake?
How do we know?
Because the ref admitted it after the game
Ah yes, Ben Taylor.
Why does that name ring a bell?
Again, this is another play where a miss call directly impacted the results of a game.
Maybe Saddiq Bey hits them both, maybe he goes 1-2, maybe he misses both.
Then again, maybe it was just payback for the time this happened in the same quarter?
So when people say the NBA has an officiating problem, last night is the perfect example.
His product is getting dragged and things only seem to be getting worse.
Especially at this point of the season where the games are so important.
We’ll probably have another batch of these moments during tonight’s slate of games.
