The fact that he is widely regarded by the ENTIRE fandom of the NBA as an unfair jerk, yet continues to be allowed to work the biggest games, speaks volumes about how in touch the NBA front office is with its fans. Of course, they don’t care. They are making money hand-over-fist, and are doing a lot of things right…so who cares if this nimrod keeps insinuating himself in the middle of games, who cares if he would (and has) made the wrong call just to get more camera time? I am not in Crawford’s head, so I can’t verify that last comment. I can, however, tell you with absolute certainty that if he has not made the wrong call on purpose all of those times I have seen him do it, then he is not a very good ref, in terms of knowing the rules, reacting to what he sees on the court, and using good judgment. Anyway, enough about that punk.

Watching the end of the Argentina-Nigeria match this morning, I noticed the FIFA ref (don’t even care enough to look up the dude’s name) making, or more accurately, NOT making what should be an easy call, but one that is never made. It’s called obstruction, and it is basically the same thing as interference in the NHL. Soccer purists — I was a FIFA-certified official for several years and know ALL of the nuances of calling obstruction in soccer, and I realize that comparing it to hockey interference is an oversimplification. It makes for an easier explanation, so I don’t care.

Anyway, you normally see this play a few times every game, where the defender basically shepherds the ball over the end line or touch line, close enough to play the ball, which was last touched by the offense, but refusing to do so, essentially blocking the offensive player from getting to the ball and ensuring either a goal kick or throw in for his side. In the simplest explanation of the rule, in order to not get called for obstruction, the defender must to be in a position to play the ball, generally accepted as being within 3 feet. At least once per game, this rule is broken, in that the defender will be impeding the offensive player, but will be doing so at a distance of 5 or 6 feet from the ball.

I am sick and tired of this not being called. My dissatisfaction really amounts to a former official being nitpicky, but it gets under my skin every single time I see this rule ignored. The proper penalty for this call is an indirect kick, which is about the least threatening thing in soccer, at least in the normal location of these infractions. I am not sure I even have anything to add at this point, other than this: if it’s in the rules, freakin’ call it, you jerks.

If I cared enough, or had time, I could probably think of several other examples of officially widely ignoring the rulebook in a particular area, and having it be generally accepted over time, but the one that really sticks out is the basketball rebound / over-the-back / ball-out-of-bounds play. Two players go up for the rebound, with the defender having good inside position. The offensive player tries to make a play on the ball, there is some physical contact between the two players, and the ball goes out of bounds…off the DEFENSIVE player about 90% of the time. It’s a common play – it happens all the time.

The problem is the fact that about 80% of the time, the incorrect call is made. Refs have taken up the practice of calling this play with the lazy man’s approach, giving the defense the ball out of bounds. It’s a total compromise, and completely understandable, but it is also the ONLY option of the 3 possibilities (over-the-back foul called, defense ball, offense ball) that did not happen.

It is a simple call to make – either there was enough contact for the ref to call an over-the-back foul, or the offense gets the ball out of bounds. Period. Those are the only 2 options, according to the rule book, as there is nothing in the rule book about ignoring the fact that the ball went out-of-bounds off Player A because it’s a widely accepted compromise.

I am even sicker about this call than the soccer interference one, since the soccer call is truly up to the interpretation of the official. With the basketball play, I guess there are some vagaries as well, but only so much as determining if there was enough contact for a foul. But if the ball went out of bounds off the defense, and you are not calling a foul, you HAVE to award the offense the ball. Not doing do is kind of ignoring the rule book, common sense, and your own eyesight, right?

I know I shouldn’t really care about this. After all, every ref blows this call just about every single time there is not a clear over-the-back foul, so it probably evens out perfectly over the course of a game. But I just can’t let it go. It is a wrong call, and it is made only because it is the path of least resistance. One team would be mad at the over-the-back call, and the other team would be complaining about awarding the ball to the offense…but no one ever seems to complain about the call of awarding the ball to the defense, of the lack of testicular fortitude it requires.

If you think I am wrong, just put a pen and pad next to you on the couch for Game 5 between the Lakers and Boston on Sunday night. Put a check mark on that piece of paper every time that call is made. Just for fun, you can also put another check mark every time the refs could have, or should have, called an “over-the-back” foul on a rebound. It’s just a shame how infrequently that is called anymore. I wonder what it would take for NBA refs to start calling it again — my guess would be one of the league’s top 5 big men and top 10 meal tickets (Howard, Bosh, etc.) to miss a full season because of a surgery necessitated after a play during which there was not even a foul called.

This column is not exactly on intellectual footing with our normal fare on the blog, so I will hurry up and make it stop. Suffice it to say that these refs are ticking me off.

Man, that game was something.  It was, without a doubt, one of the most dramatic moments I have seen in sports.  Couple that with Tyree’s catch and Kansas-Memphis…and I am done for 2008.  I can’t take any more.  What a year it has been…and it’s not even half over yet.

So, let me take a little time and explain why Game 4, despite all of the drama, proves once and for all that the NBA is not legit and the fix is on. 

But, before I do that, I need to digress for one minute.  Bill Simmons, one of my favorite sports writers of all time, wrote a game diary for Game 4.  As usual, his typically rabid and overly dramatic Boston fanhood comes shining through…it is why lots of people (including me) love to read his stuff.  He is not ashamed to be a fan first and a writer second. 

As for myself, I did something similar for Game 3.  Of course, I could not in good conscience call it a “diary”, since I have a 4-year-old daughter that has one of those.  Instead, I decided to call it a “running commentary”…kind of a snooty term for it, but I thought “game log” sounded too informal.

Anyway, I only bring it up for one reason…mine is better.  As in, WAY better.  I am no Bill Simmons…not even close.  I am a Microsoft SharePoint consultant that just started my own business delivering geek-for-hire services, and I like to play around with MackOnSports in my spare time.  Simmons turns out one amazing piece after another, and I someday aspire to a mere fraction of his greatness…but for one week in June, I own Bill Simmons.  And it feels pretty damn good.

You be the judge:

Mack’s Game 3 Running Commentary

Simmons’ Game 4 Running Diary

OK — let’s get back to the original point.  Game 4 proved to me, without a doubt, that the fix is definitely on in the NBA and David Stern has his sleazy lawyer mitts all over everything.

Game 4 was, in the opinion of just about everyone, a “straight game.”  What that means, in the context of June 2008 for the NBA, is that the number of fouls called on and free throws attempted by each team were almost identical.  So everyone assumes that the refs were just doing their job without instructions from the league, which has been readily apparent in other games in this NBA Finals, and just about every significant game I can remember over the past decade or so.  Well, let me be the first to say it…Everyone is wrong.

Just because the game was called in such a manner that the fouls called were even between the two teams does not mean that it should have been called even, or that those calls were in keeping with what was happening on the court over the course of that game.  I counted no less than 8 non-called Celtic fouls in the first half.  But, the Lakers appeared to be running away with the game at that time, so it seemed that the refs made a conscious effort to let a little more contact go by without a whistle.

All of that kind of played into exactly what the NBA needed — a “straight game.”  Then, the Celtics decided to make a great comeback   the Lakers decided to lay down like a bunch of sissies and not only was it a straight game, so people would not talk about the refs for a night or two, it was also dramatic as hell, which put Donaghy even further from everyone’s mind.

Holy f*ck…Game 5 is on in the background, and I just saw the biggest bush league play I have ever seen in my life.  Radmanovich had a wide open three and some sackless wonder on the Celtics bench was jumping up and clapping about 3 feet behind Radmanovich, trying to distract him.  ABC is not showing the replay…I want to see who it was, so I will know who to hate.  Well, I am a Sixers fan, through and through, so whoever that nimrod is, I hope he contracts a flesh-eating bacteria from the $10 gigolo he hired last night and gives it to all his teammates and Doc Rivers during their team sexcapade on the flight back to Boston for Game 6…I feel that way about him just because he wears that disgusting green jersey.  But if I can find out who he is, then I can really hate him.

Anyway, am I the only one who thought it was just a bit curious that the one time when the NBA needed a “straight game” more than anything else, they got it…especially when the run of play should have dictated a huge discrepancy in favor of the home team?  How the hell can we do no better than this — Stern is dirty, Selig is retarded, Bettman is clueless, and Goodell has screwed up everything he has touched so far.

I would rather have 100 retarded, clueless screwups before I have to deal with another David Stern.  Can we please just get rid of him already?  Can’t the great grandson of Dr. Naismith just kill Stern in his sleep and put all of us out of our misery?

** ALL TIMES EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME

8:40 — Pau Gasol’s head is already covered in grease and he is just standing around before the game…on a scale of 1 to 10, how bad do you think his B.O. is?

8:43 — I just saw a commercial for Wipeout…could the timing be any more perfect for that abortion of a show?  What better way to forget about the economy and your crummy life than to see some overexcited loser covered in mud trying to run over the top of some big red inflatable balls and failing miserably?

8:53 — David Cook just out-greased Gasol…how is that possible?

8:56 — Jay-Z’s “Ain’t No Love (In the Heart of the City)” is playing during the Lakers intro…even better that it was just the Bobby “Blue” Bland sample and not Jay-Z’s rap.

8:57 — They followed it up with The Who…never mind…way to suck the life out of the building.

9:06 — Michele Tafoya just showed the 38-10 foul shot stats from Game 2…how fitting would it be for this to go down as “the year the officials decided the championship”…more on that later…by the way, the game is finally underway…looks like another midnight finish in the East.

9:09 — Kobe Bryant just got hacked by two separate Celtics and no call.

9:10 — Uncalled elbow by Perkins followed by a Ticky-tack foul called on Radmanovich at the other end.

9:13 — Bryant hacked again with no call…hacked again 10 seconds later and it is finally called…maybe I should start keeping track of blatant hacks on Kobe that are not called.

9:14 — Our crack announcing crew (actually, they have been outstanding) just pointed out that Rondo is guarding Kobe…MJ’s 63 may fall tonight.

9:15 — Ray Allen just committed a foul that could be considered “borderline” flagrant and/or intentional…not called.

9:20 — Rondo just took Kobe to the hole and looked for a shot instead of a kick-out…could be a long night if he thinks he can do that.

9:20 — Rondo just blatantly hacked Kobe…Official Count of Uncalled Blatant Foul Hacks on Kobe:  3

9:23 — Aaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!!!!!  Sorry –  they just showed a closeup of Grease-ol.

9:23 — Foul by Ray Allen on Kobe…Kobe is going for 50 points, he will be able to get his shot and/or get to the line any time he wants, and the Official Count of Uncalled Blatant Hacks on Kobe will be up to at least 10.

9:26 — Kobe just abused <<insert current defender’s name here>>.

9:27 — Radmanovich just got called for his 3rd foul…all three of the tickey-tack variety…two on Perkins and one on Posey…and the Celtics players fouled in each case went flying like European soccer players…curious.

9:33 — Kobe has Posey on him…and they failed to even get him the ball on the last trip…Kobe just came down and posted Posey up to make sure he got the ball…he is taking over every aspect of the game…and he needs to if the Lakers are going to have a chance.

9:35 — Cassel just launched a quick 3, watched his shot miss instead of getting back on defense, recovered late and made a stupid foul…he has built a long career on that kind of performance.

9:38 — End of First Quarter — L.A. 20, Boston 20 — Kobe has 11.

9:38 — The just showed the new Hulk trailer…I remember reading someone online complaining that they just made a Hulk movie…I don’t care.  The last one was in 2003, and starred Eric Bana, for crying out loud…can you even count it?  Actually, I will go on record right now and say that we should have a mandatory Hulk movie every 5 years, to take advantage of the advances in special effects…and the actor playing Bruce Banner must be at least a lateral move, if not an outright improvement, from movie to movie.  Obviously, going from Bana to Edward Norton is like going from tripe to filet mignon.

9:42 — Foul on Odom that was very cheap.  It’s Odom, and he is going to get his fouls just as surely as Kobe is going to get his points, but it was still kind of cheap. 

9:43 — Cassel has been on the floor for 5 possessions…and shot the ball 4 times…Celtics fans are ordering Jack Daniels all across the country.

9:47 — P.J. Brown just committed a stupid foul and decided to get in Jordan Farmar’s face…wow…he’s tough…although Farmar grates on me like rat poison…part of me would like to see Brown grab him by those Dumbo ears and swing him around for a bit.

9:53 — Farmar and Luke Walton have shot the ball on 3 of the last 4 Lakers possessions…can we bring Cassel back and go for the trifecta of suckitude?

9:55 — Lakers extend the lead to 9 with Kobe and 4 guys from the local YMCA.

9:58 — Aaaaaaaaaargh!!!!!!  Magic-Bird split screen commercial…can you please show Grease-ol again?  Well, they must know what they are doing at ABC…we went from the traveshamockery of Magic-Bird to David Cook (OK, this is a DEFINITE step in the WRONG direction), then Dustin Hoffman, then Spike Lee, then Eddie Murphy, then Floyd Mayweather, then Jack Nicholson, then Wall-E.

10:02 — it’s been a while for this…Kobe just abused <<insert defender’s name here>>

10:03 — Here is the freethrow discrepancy…L.A. has taken 18 and Boston has taken 2..let the conspiracy theorists begin…but if they do, they will be wrong…Kobe has been fouled at least 5 additional times, 3 of them blatant hack-a-Shaq fouls…and the refs have called at least 6 or 7 touch fouls on L.A. at the other end…the main difference is that Kobe has taken over and is getting <<insert Celtic defender’s name here>> out of position and getting fouled, in the act of shooting, more often than not

10:08 — Kobe just got fouled by Posey, acted like my 3-year-old when he did not get the call, and got a technical…hey, you can’t spell mamby-pamby without mamba..while not a hard foul, it was on an isolation play and there was no excuse why a professional referee would ever miss that call…Official Count of Uncalled Blatant Hacks on Kobe:  4

10:11 — Kobe just fought 3 Celtics for a rebound…there is no way the Celtics will win any of the next 3 games unless Kobe is hurt…he will not allow it.

10:14 — Don’t get me wrong, I loved Kevin Garnett (at least until he became a Celtic), and his Carolina Kid / “20, 10 and 5″ And1 commercial was one of my favorites of all time…but he is wilting under the pressure of his first NBA Finals…wilting.

10:16 — Kobe just missed 2 FTs, and has missed 5 overall…maybe we can stop the comparisons to Jordan now…do you think MJ would ever miss 5 freethrows in one half of a finals game?

10:17 — Halftime — L.A.  43, Boston 37 — Kobe has 19…the entire “Big 3″ have 16 (and Ray Allen has 12 of those)…the Lakers should be ahead by at least 20 points, but everyone other than Kobe and Sasha Vujacic (not a typo — he has been nails) have tried to give the game away…Phil Jackson is going to kill someone at halftime.  I can see hit now, the Zen Master kicking over tables and getting all red in the face…I would pay to see that halftime show.

10:20 — Speaking of halftime shows, the halftime show at the Mack household knows no equal…I just went upstairs to check on the kids…my daughter is laying in bed with my wife…and she just asked me how they can call it “America’s Funniest Videos” when most of the videos are not funny.

10:32 — Tim Donaghy is being discussed over and over.  It appears that he and his lawyer pulled an A-Rod and decided to use the spotlight of the NBA Finals to grab some attention, and the idiots at ABC have taken the bait.  What a shame.  I have already spent too much time on that sack of dung just in this paragraph.  I will return when they talk about something relevant.

10:38 — The second half is underway

10:40 — Rondo is down with an ankle problem … pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease let it be Cassel that replaces him.

10:42 — Split screen of Rondo walking to the locker room under his own power…which makes him hands-down the toughest member of the Celtics to suffer an in-game injury in these playoffs.

10:43 — Damn.  Doc Rivers has put in Eddie House to replace Rondo, instead of Sam Cassel.  Perhaps he knows how to coach after all.

10:45 — Radmanovich just fouled Perkins before he even caught the ball and the refs counted the basket.  Wow.  Maybe these dudes are just senile and can’t see anything.

10:52 — Rondo is still not back…and House does not have a single turnover…and he just hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 2 points.  Do you think Doc has enough sense to keep Rondo on the bench?

10:57 — I just saw a trailer for a movie called “Wanted”, where the pasty eunuch from Scrubs plays some kind of assassin.  How can that one miss?

11:01 — The Lakers just had the following happen on back-to-back possessions –> Trevor Ariza launched a 3, then on the next trip, Lamar Odom launched a 22-footer…and Kobe did not touch the ball on either trip.  This does not look like a Phil Jackson-coached team.  Plus, I think that most of the players on the Lakers are just plain lacking when it comes to basketball IQ…do you think Jordan’s Bulls would have had back-to-back trips in the third quarter of a Finals game, down by 4 points at home, where they did not even let Jordan touch the ball?

11:08 — Lamar Odom just got a loose-ball rebound and drove it coast-to-coast to try to finish in traffic.  I have to say it again…this does not look like a Phil Jackson-coached team.

11:09 — End of the Third Quarter — Boston 62, L.A. 60 — Kobe has 26.

11:12 — The Celtics are starting the 4th quarter with Ray Allen, Leon Powe, P.J. Brown, Eddie House and James Posey.  Maybe they do not want to win.

11:17 — Leon Powe just flopped in the lane instead of trying to play defense and the refs rewarded him with an offensive foul.  Sure, it was Lamar Odom, and he is destined to be in foul trouble in every game of this series because he is just not smart enough to do what he needs to do to stay in the game and help his team…but it was a pretty bad call just the same.

11:20 — Turn about is fair play.  Farmar just took a dive and got an offensive foul call on Paul Pierce…which was his fifth foul.

11:23 — They just showed Doc Rivers’ inspirational pep talk that took place during the commercial.  “We’ve been hanging around all night.  Let’s build on this lead.  Scores and stops.”  Now that is some amazing coaching.

11:25 — Rajon Rondo is checking back into the game at the 7:59 mark of the 4th quarter.  Let’s see what happens.  If it works out, I will give credit to Doc Rivers for making the move…but I am not worried about having to do that…not in the least.

11:27 — Kobe is fouled by Posey on the perimeter, fouled during the drive, and fouled during the shot.  Once again, nothing that looks like a hack, but three times in 5 seconds…I have to count that.  Official Count of Uncalled Blatant Hacks on Kobe Bryant:  5

11:29 — Jeff Van Gundy just suggested a Celtics backcourt of Pierce, Posey and Allen, with Allen handling the ball, to take Rondo out of the mix, who is not only young but left the game with an injury earlier.  How does he not have a head coaching job in the NBA?

11:30 — I am officially taking one of the blatant uncalled fouls away.  Kobe just did the Italian soccer player move on what looked like a very small amount of contact.  Official Count:  4

11:31 — Rondo for 2.  Since his return — 2 points, 1 foul, 0 turnovers

11:33 — Bodies flying all over the place during a run of particularly sloppy basketball.  Man, this always chaps my ass.  If you are going to call it tight in the first quarter, you call it tight for the whole game.  What is happening now is the basketball equivalent of an umpire changing the strike zone at the end of the game.  Granted, these refs probably cannot remember anything that happened in the first quarter, or the names of any of their great grandchildren, but it’s still inexcusable to change the rules in the middle of the 4th quarter.

11:36 — ABC just showed some slo-mo highlights over a song from what sounded like Three Doors Down…a song I have not heard before, but I instantly recognized all three chords that comprise the repertoire and vast musical prowess of Three Doors Down.  Why don’t they show highlights and let Van Gundy and Jackson break it down for us?  Why must we be subjected to watching good basketball while listening to crappy music?

11:38 — The Celtics are trapping Kobe on every possession.  Maybe Doc knows a thing or two…although it seems that they are perhaps giving Kobe too much attention too far away from the basket.

11:40 — Horrible ticky-tack foul call against Kobe on Pierce after about 3 moving screens by Garnett.  But that does not really matter…what matters is that Kobe started acting like a drama queen, working the crowd, and the ref started bitching at him…I mean, he was screaming at Kobe.  How is that acceptable?  He either did enough for you to call a technical, or he did not.  You use the whistle or put it in your pocket.  Since when is it OK for the guys that are supposed to control the game to start bitching at the biggest superstar in the league during the 4th quarter of a Finals game?

11:44 — Eddie House has checked back into the game.  Rondo did not hurt his team.

11:44 — Grease-ol just launched a wild shot at the end of the shot clock.  Kobe did not touch the ball during that possession.

11:45 — Garnett just abused Grease-ol.

11:45 — Vujacic just launched an early 3, even though the Lakers are ahead.  Kobe did not touch the ball during that possession, either.  I will say it once again…this does not look like a Phil Jackson-coached team.

11:46 — Vujacic just made a 3 from the corner, set up by the Celtics double-teaming Kobe 35 feet away from the basket.  Doc Rivers — coaches like you, they do grow on trees.  Meanwhile, Sasha has 20 points off the bench.

11:48 — 1:33 remaining, Lakers by 7 points.  A Phil Jackson-coached team cannot lose this game, can they?

11:50 — Kevin Garnett with a wide open dunk and only 5 seconds off the clock.  Do you need to even say that this does not look like a Phil Jackson-coached team?

11:51 — Kobe Bryant just abused <<Insert Celtic defender’s name here>>.  The Celtics are no longer trapping Kobe, and Doc does not appear ready to let someone else beat him.

11:51 — Eddie House hits a 3 from the corner.  It’s a 4-point game.

11:52 — Kobe Bryant just abused Ray Allen again.  I had to put poor Ray’s name in there because Kobe has destroyed him all night.  He just cannot guard Kobe.  So, Doc…what do you have to say about your decision to let Kobe beat you instead of making Sasha Vujacic, or anyone other than Kobe, beat you?  “Uhhhhh.  I told my guys…scores and stops.”

11:53 — Kevin Garnett just got called for an illegal screen.  I agree that it was totally illegal, but why call it now?  You can’t change the parameters of your officiating in the 4th quarter like that.

11:54 — Celtics do not foul.  Down by 6 with a bunch of time left, and they are just going to let the clock run out.  Overall, this has got to go down as one of the all-time botched coaching jobs in NBA history, right?

11:54 — Game Over.  L.A.  87, Boston 81 — Kobe had 36.

11:56 — Final thoughts:

1.  Is Doc Rivers the worst coach to ever make an NBA Finals?

2.  Is Pau Grease-ol the softest big man since Shawn Bradley?

3.  How is it possible in this universe or any other that Doc Rivers has a head coaching job in the NBA and Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy do not?

4.  How perfect would it be if the Boston fans start bitching about the freethrow discrepancy and this series goes to 7 games and becomes forever known as “The NBA Finals That Was Decided By the Refs and David Stern in a Blatant Attempt to Make As Much Money as Possible for the League and the T.V. Networks”?  As a life-long Sixers fan, that is the only outcome that is remotely acceptable to me.