Empty the Bench

“Especially in light of similar prior acts by this official, a significant suspension is warranted,” Stern said in a statement. “Although Joey is consistently rated as one of our top referees, he must be held accountable for his actions on the floor, and we will have further discussions with him following the season to be sure he understands his responsibilities.”

There are a few NBA referees who have made themselves into household names, and most broadcasters make a point of mentioning just how great they are each time out. For my money though, I think a ref is doing his job when you don’t even notice his presence. Give me a guy who can consistently make the right call, not draw attention to himself and officiate the game without incident over the Dick Bavettas of the world any time. I don’t think the fans fill the seats or watch the games at home to see the outcome determined by the whims or specific temperament of a ref. I know I don’t. I want to see the game decided by the players, the coaches and nobody else. So you can imagine how I feel about long-time NBA official Joey “Joe” Crawford and his latest antics.

Crawford ejected Duncan from San Antonio’s loss after calling a second technical foul on the Spurs star while he was laughing on the bench.

“He looked at me and said, ‘Do you want to fight? Do you want to fight?’” Duncan said. “If he wants to fight, we can fight. I don’t have any problem with him, but we can do it if he wants to. I have no reason why in the middle of a game he would yell at me, ‘Do you want to fight?’”

Crawford was cited for “improper conduct” and “inappropriate comments made to Duncan during the game.” Stern said Crawford’s actions “failed to meet the standards of professionalism and game management we expect of NBA referees.”

The exchange occurred in the third quarter of an April 15th contest between the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs. After Duncan was ejected, the Mavericks came from behind to beat the Spurs and ended San Antonio’s chance of earning the second seed in the Western Conference. That’s significant. That’s not just a ref making a point, it’s a professional who works in a highly visible, multi-million dollar industry and whose primary responsibility is to ensure that the best team that plays the best game wins on any given night. A game like this is even more demanding of objectivity and patience. However, I don’t get the feeling Crawford understands that. He thinks he’s bigger than the game and bigger than his job. He’s obviously skilled and respected when it comes to calling fouls. Joey has worked more playoff and NBA Finals games than any current referee. He’s appeared in the Finals every year since 1986. But he can’t set his ego aside, and that makes him a bad referee.

In a 2004 interview with Referee.com Crawford revealed his mindset on reffing a game, “So when I came into this (officiating), I’m saying, ‘You gotta be aggressive, you gotta be aggressive, you gotta be aggressive.’” He went on to say, “I’ve gone overboard and I’ve gone cuckoo, but what it’s always boiled down to is I just don’t appreciate players or coaches disrespecting my profession. I want them to respect my profession. I don’t know if they do. I hope they do because I respect the hell out of theirs.”

How is that relevant? And how is it his prerogative to use his station as an NBA official to command respect? I mean, sure, we’d all like to be respected and we can demand it in our interpersonal relationships. But the coaches and players have no obligation to respect an official so long as they conduct themselves professionally and within the limits of the NBA rules.

Here’s what gets me though: this was a hugely important game and it’s not like Tim Duncan is some punk kid who runs his mouth off. Duncan is polite, mild-mannered and professional. He’s a 10-year veteran and one of the better people in the NBA. It’s ludicrous for Crawford to hold what Duncan calls “a personal vendetta against [him].” If Crawford can’t comport himself appropriately when dealing with a guy like Tim, then he has no business working an NBA officiating position where dealing with youth, fierce competitiveness and high emotion in a calm and objective manner is a nightly requisite.

“You know, Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game would have been good, but real history to me would be when Jake O’Donnell hands out his 1,000th technical. I would love to be there for something like that.” Oh, that’s why I love you, Joey. You’ve got your priorities straight.