Is Donaghy's saga over? - Detroit Pistons Fan Community

mikhail1973 · #1 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 02:30 PM

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Isn't amazing how the whole Tim Donaghy situation seemingly was just swept under the carpet? Sure he supposedly was going to "sing" and talk about the misdeeds of other refs, but do people really believe any allegations he makes will go public? The NBA has done what all sports leagues tend to do, they control the situation and all news reports concerning it.
Word has now leaked about some of Donaghy's suspected cohorts in the scandal. Surprisingly one of them said it seems law enforcement and presumably the NBA have lost interest in her story. They got Donaghy to admit guilt and with it I am sure the NBA hopes the story quickly and cleanly goes away. They refuse to give up any more information, lest some pesky Arizona prosecutor goes further digging into the sordid state of the NBA.
Oh but its not so easy David Stern. Your game has problems which some might believe make it rotten to the core. It isn't just crooked refs the fans have to worry about, but the clear notion that a league built on marketing anointed superstars could have a serious favoritism problem.
Announcers and observers readily talk about how some players get the "superstar treatment" from the refs. It amazes me how people just shrug and accept this. How is a league built on making its chosen best players look and perform better superior than wrestling or roller derby? Just because the whole thing isn't completely scripted are we supposed to say that makes it good legitimate entertainment?
Look if David Stern really wanted to make us all believe he had the game most above reproach we would see a lot better referees applying the rule book at every turn. No more three or four steps to the basket for Lebron James or Dwayne Wade. No more crossover dribbles that are clear carrying violations. Would such determined applications of the rules make the game a bit more boring? Maybe, but the truly great players will learn and adjust.
Gambling really is a wash, maybe it tainted the game in this instance but Stern can't deny it adds tens of millions to NBA coffers in TV ratings and purchases of League Pass subscriptions. Unless he truly believes the line that people are buying League Pass just so they can follow their favorite teams when they live in another state. Some gambling hating pundits may talk about how terrible gambling is for the game and how it wrecks its integrity, but there is no doubt gamblers are as much at the mercy of poor referees as the players and the fans are.
Truth is the NBA has to control the image of itself and its product because basketball played on courts worldwide by non-professionals bears little resemblance to what you see in the NBA. Go to a local pickup game and see how few times players get practically mugged by defenders as they do in the NBA. How many times do the games revolve around the predictable dribble drive and then pass out for a three-point shot? And of course, where else do you see guys doing ridiculous feats of athletic prowess in dunking a ball?
Not that the NBA's game completely lacks entertainment value, but its just on so many levels a well choreographed event. This is what the NBA decided would sell to the wider public and it was a strategy which has worked fabulously. However the chinks in the armor are showing with big drops in ratings over the last few years and it remains to be see what fallout over Donaghy the league must deal with in this upcoming season.
The show will go on, but how long until people stop following it to the degree they do now as the questions of legitimacy continue to pop up? Deeper changes need to be made beyond just addressing a rogue referee. Those changes and their success or failure will be the real legacy of David Stern.

The Low · #2 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 03:02 PM

I'm still amazed that the whole Michael Vick thing has overshadowed this by so much. It's just one guy committing a crime. Whereas this event taints the validity of an entire professional sports league.

...but, what do I know...

TaShawn · #3 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 03:08 PM

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Originally Posted by The Low

I'm still amazed that the whole Michael Vick thing has overshadowed this by so much. It's just one guy committing a crime. Whereas this event taints the validity of an entire professional sports league.

...but, what do I know...

Vick was about the most exciting player in the NFL. And the NFL is way more popular than the NBA.

Nobody even knew who Donaghy was before this, and it appears as though he was acting alone. Really, a whitch hunt for other refs who may have gambled recreationally at the casino is not more news worthy than a star NFL QB going to the slammer.

roscoe36 · #4 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 03:09 PM

The Donaghy thing is quiet possibly the biggest thing to happen to the NBA EVER, and yet I noticed ESPN took it off their NBA page, yesterday.

It's all horsecrap. I just can't wait until Jim Gray corners David Stern during a halftime on TNT/ESPN? and asks him one million annoying and intrusive questions.

Dumars4Ever · #5 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 03:17 PM

It's the biggest thing ever if there are lots of refs fixing games, but if it was really just the one guy, I don't think it's anywhere near that big a deal. The Vick dogfighting story was going nowhere until he was actually indicted, which apparently came as a big surprise to the league and to the Falcons. So if there ends up being some real news about other refs fixing games, I'm sure the story will come back bigger than ever. But until that happens (if it does), what's there to talk about?

TaShawn · #6 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 03:32 PM

You know what is getting hushed up is the Lance Briggs incedent.

He crashed a $350,000 car at 3:30 AM into a light pole by himself, fled the scene of the accident, filed a false police report saying that the car was stolen, and is not even getting disciplined by his team.

Obviously drunk.

You don't crash a car into nothing by yourself if you are sober. And if by chance you do, then you definitely stick around so that the police realize you are not drunk.

Talk about lucky. If that light pole had been another car, then he'd be wishing he were Michael Vick right about now.

The Low · #7 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 03:49 PM

The problem is, the report was made that Donaghy was going to spill the beans on others and that apparently has been swept under the rug as well. I don't care if it ruins the league. This kind of thing need to be exposed and eradicated. Otherwise, what's the point of salvaging a bogus league anyway?

If covering up the rest of this investigation (as what seems to be the case with this additional witness in Arizona) is what they will resort to in an effort to make this go away, then there are some serious issues that, IMO, doesn't support the notion that anyone should support this league at all in the future. If, indeed, Donaghy knew of other officials involved in this and the commissioner or anyone else involved are making efforts to prevent this information from being divulged, they should all be fired and/or resign.

Besides, I don't care what the popularity of the sports involved, one guy going to jail over an entire professional league having it's entire validity put on the table doesn't add up to me.

Dumars4Ever · #8 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 04:11 PM

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Originally Posted by The Low

The problem is, the report was made that Donaghy was going to spill the beans on others and that apparently has been swept under the rug as well. I don't care if it ruins the league. This kind of thing need to be exposed and eradicated. Otherwise, what's the point of salvaging a bogus league anyway?

Well, maybe that report wasn't accurate. Who's sweeping it under the rug? The feds, because Stern is paying them off? If more stuff emerges, then so be it. I'm not in favor of covering it up either. I'm just not convinced that this is what's actually happening.

TaShawn · #9 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 04:12 PM

If he was threatening to spill the beans about other refs involved in fixing games, then it would be humungous news. The general public just doesn't care if some ref they've never heard of gets ratted out for playing video poker.

However, when you torture/ kill "man's best friend," then it piques people's interest.

Brittany Spears gets disproportionally more news time for far more trivial matters. That doesn't necessarilly mean that the media or the viewers think that her wrongdoings are more serious than others. They just get better ratings.

The Low · #10 (**permalink**) 08-29-2007, 04:54 PM

ESPN - Donaghy to share info about other refs with feds - NBA

Sources: Ref ready to drop dime on others | Daily News | 08/22/2007

These don't seem inaccurate to me. It reads to me like Stern is doing everything in his power to insist that there is only one guy doing wrong. Furthermore, EVEN IF, you only want to believe these guys aren't doing anything illegal, their integrity should be called into question from the very thought that they are willfully engaging in activity that violates their contract agreements. We would crucify a player for the same.