Chris Mihm Calls Foul
As you're watching the Lakers on most given nights, do you ever get the sense that Chris Mihm is growing frustrated with the refs? Well, that's only because he is. And he doesn't quite know what to do about it. I imagine Mihm would be the first to admit, there are many nights where he's matched against a big with more pure skill than him. But in his mind, that's nothing compared to challenge provided by the whistle blowers, who often make his life hell. No doubt, Mihm's productivity is more directly related to his foul count than any other single factor. And unless Odom feels like working the post, L.A. has basically no inside scoring when Mihm's parked on the pine. Thus, his whistle tally is a legit issue for the team as well.
I talked briefly with Mihm after Wednesday's loss to Memphis, a night where he nonetheless played very well (15 and 11, plus 2 blocks). Coincidence that he also didn't rack up much (relatively speaking) in the foul department (only 4, in an OT game)? Not likely. We didn't speak much about the game itself, as I figured the game would be analyzed plenty on the blog as it was. Instead, I focused the conversation mostly on the refs and his relationship with them, a situation that will remain relevant as the Lakers look to make a playoff push. Here's what he had to say.
Andrew Kamenetzky: Foul trouble has obviously turned into an Achilles' heel for you. How frustrating is it on a personal level having to deal with it this much?
Chris Mihm: It's really frustrating, but I can either sit there and focus on that the whole time, or keep playing. I'm going to go out there and give it everything I got every night. Some nights, I really feel like I get some (bad) calls, especially after watching them on replay, but...
AK: Do you think a lot of them are "reputation" calls?
CM: I don't know what reputation I've got. I've always been a hard worker. I play hard. It's almost like, I feel they don't understand the athleticism I have and my ability to get the balls that maybe some guys my size can't get to. So I get penalized for that. It can come back to hurt me.
AK: Have you ever tried speaking with the refs about it?
CM: All the time. All the time. And I feel like I have a good rapport with everybody in the league.
AK: It's not like you get T'ed up often.
CM: No. I've never been one to sit there and call out a ref. So I don't know. Like I said, I play my game.
AK: Your frustration is visible. And it's understandable.
CM: Yeah. It's frustrating, but if I put my mind in that place, then I'm letting them take me out of the game. No matter what choppy minutes I'm playing sometimes when I get in foul trouble, I'm focusing on being a factor. Defensively and offensively. Points in the paint.
AK: When you watch yourself on tape after the game, as far examining the calls, is there anything you're watching for, in terms of the little things the refs may be calling?
CM: Yeah. I look for body contact. And occasionally, it's there. But it's my understanding that when someone drives in, if I jump straight up, I've got my space vertically. I can jump up, as long as I stay upright. I just feel like, at times, the guards now can just run in there, throw their arms, throw the ball up and yell, and they seem to get some calls that way.
AK: You really got off to a quick start (against Memphis). How much does being involved early and often help you personally? And how much do you think it helps the team as far as executing the offense?
CM: I think we really need to find a way to keep a consistent inside-outside game. We've got good shooters, good guards, but when we get relegated to just shooting jumpers, it all depends on whether or we're hot or cold. People aren't in rebounding position and we give up a lot of easy possessions that way. I just try to make space down there, use my moves and get it started early. And I was able to do that tonight.
Once again, aside from Kobe, Mihm is the best player on this team. And I mean that.
Posted by: AB | December 29, 2005 at 12:11 PM
Was it just me or did anybody see Hakim Warrick foul Mihm as the clock was winding down? The refs definitely swallowed their whistles... not to mention a non-call on Kobe on his drive.
Posted by: Butch | December 29, 2005 at 12:45 PM
I've said it before, and I'll say it again... It is CRIMINAL the way the refs treat Chris. The single worst thing about the NBA is the officiating, and it's such a predominant flaw that it makes the majority of games very hard to watch.
Posted by: DJ Cobb Salad | December 29, 2005 at 12:53 PM
AGREED
Posted by: Frustrated Laker Fan | December 29, 2005 at 01:01 PM
Mihm is born to get fouled. lmao.
CLIPPERS RULES!!!!
Posted by: Clippers The great | December 29, 2005 at 01:19 PM
I feel for Chris, I really do.
Some of those ghost calls are rediculous and he really takes it like a professional.
I don't know protocol but if were the lakers (management)but I would plead my case to the league. I would creat a tape of some of these calls that are going against Chris on one end of the court but not on the other. I would take several games and show several examples. I think a tape of evidence to the league would at least force them to re-evaluate the way they are calling fouls on Chris.
I'm sure they have an intern that could do that.
Posted by: Peter | December 29, 2005 at 01:22 PM
I disagree with Mihm. I'd say 90% of the time the replay proves him guilty as charged. There are some bad calls against him but that's true for everyone in the NBA. His look of total confusion after every call is already getting old.
Posted by: Murph | December 29, 2005 at 01:25 PM
Thanks for the scoop, AK.
I get the feeling the players and coaches are more comfortable talking with you guys, cuz they know you won't come back and distort their words.
Posted by: KB8 Fan | December 29, 2005 at 01:57 PM
Mihm's future looks more promising then Lamar's. He has developed a mid range jumper of the last few games and that can open up the paint for Kobe to penetrate if he keeps knocking them down.
Posted by: TJ | December 29, 2005 at 02:27 PM
Don't everyone get riled up, but, I am going to go out on a limb and play the race card for Chris Mihm (not in a bad way). It just seems that referees wouldn't be quick to assume that Mihm suffers from white-guys disease (non-athletic, slow-footed) if he didn't fit the description. It's a reputation he is going to work very hard to overcome.
Posted by: oscar | December 29, 2005 at 02:40 PM
Its not that Chris does or doesn't foul other players. Its the fact that he gets called for fouls that aren't being called on the other end of the court. I just want consistency. If a post player is defending a guy moving toward the basket and the defender gets called for a blocking foul, then it should be called on the other side of the court. That doesn't happen with Chris, I've watch games looking for just that and its not the same on both sides of the ball.
I would be willing to bet that had CM been on the defensive end of his last shot last night the refs would have called the foul on him.
I don't care that the definition of a foul changes from game to game; its when the definition changes from one end of the court to the other.
Posted by: Peter | December 29, 2005 at 03:12 PM
Let me get this straight - the refs are running up and down the court, trying to follow the plays as well as they can, and then the opposing team's center backs Mihm down and the refs think to themselves, "Hmmm, Mihm is white, therefore not athletic, so I'm gonna call a foul on him now."
Yeah, that's what happens...in Blog land. Mihm fouls people and the refs call it. It's very simple. I wish this wasn't the case, but it's tough to argue with the replays.
Posted by: murph | December 29, 2005 at 03:16 PM
it's very hard to watch nba games with all the bad officiating going on. it can really effect the game. say a team gets a bunch of bad calls at anytime during the game. that takes away any momentum, any energy the team is trying to build. they aren't allowed to be aggressive on either end of the floor. you take that away from the players and they're going to lose. i'm a die-hard laker fan but i'm nearly at the point of boycotting the rest of the season b/c of the unfair treatment they get from the officials. whose officiating the officials. besides the no-calls for mihm and kobe at the end of the game, anyone catch the wrong-call when the ball bounced off stoudamire out of bounds but Memphis was still allowed to inbound? that could've changed the game there. the lakers could've properly set a play for the last possession instead of some crappy play with Bryant attacking from a bad angle like he did last night.
Posted by: Ben | December 29, 2005 at 03:40 PM
i love chris mihm. love him. rooting for him is so much more fun than rooting for shaq.
the truth is it's a little bit of both. even on the calls against him that AREN'T fouls, a lot of them LOOK like fouls.
he's got to realize he's got to play spotless for awhile to reverse that rep of his. try to frame every movement he makes as clean as possible for the refs. minimize any kind of wild swiping at the ball.
amid the horror that was last night's game, he was a bright spot.
Posted by: john | December 29, 2005 at 06:07 PM
Mihm plays hard for the Lakers.
Now the refs, you gotta give this man some breaks.
Posted by: gdchild | December 29, 2005 at 08:25 PM
I'm in Ohio and I've followed Chris's career since his Cavs days and I've always liked his play.Like he said,he plays hard all the time and he's had this year about all of his body parts hurt yet he's still never missed a game.He won't blow you away with his stats but he does his job well enough and he's a great guy off the court as well.
Posted by: Gary Graham | December 29, 2005 at 08:26 PM
It's a well known that NBA referees have to make judgement calls (based on the fact that there's not enough refs on the floor to see all the angles). Many times they don't see the foul directly, but call a foul based on the players percieved movements that may indicate a foul. If it was as simple as just a foul or not. Then we wouldn't be having this conversatoin.
And in making those judgments, referees have to decide if a player is making contact to gain unfair advantage or if the player has the skills to put themselves in certain allowable position and it's the other player committing the foul.
Now, I'm not saying being black or white makes you a better or worse b-baller. But, if a referee percieves a particular player as having more skills or less skills they will make judgement calls based on how they see a player apply their skills.
Some players who become great at mastering thier skills are given the benefit of the doubt. Which is why you see rookies get called for fouls that veterans would never get whistled for.
But, the refs are mainly fair. If you can show your hustle and stay in control on any given night, they will respect that.
There needs to be more refs on the floor. Why do two guys have to keep running back and forth? They should put a stationary ref, to assist, on each corner and two roving refs as the main decision makers.
Posted by: 1979 | December 30, 2005 at 05:46 AM
I am a huge Chris Mihm fan. He shows up every single night and gives it his all.
The refs have called so many non-fouls on him this season that it is disugsting.
He is a great asset to the Laker organization and will continue to be so. I look forward to watching him play every single night!
Plus he isn't bad to look at either... ;)
Sorry, had to thrown that in!
Posted by: Alisa Hellman | December 30, 2005 at 08:50 AM
Hey my take on the referee thing is that of all pro sports the NBA officials are hands down the worst. Night in and night out asolutely horrible. The "star" calls the momentum changers, that they seem to call purposefully, so as to not allow games into turning into blowouts. The late whistles, I mean its either a foul or not. Don't wait to see if the shot falls. C'mon. They are horrible, especially Steve Javvey.
Posted by: ramon | December 30, 2005 at 08:56 AM
Chris Mihm is great, but its a balance when it comes to his fouls. He both fouls too much AND is called for too many non-fouls.
He can only work on what he can. He can't control the refs.
He should let Phil be his mouthpiece. Refs don't like players bitching about fouls. It doesn't make anything better.
Posted by: Jon Kavulic | December 30, 2005 at 09:51 AM
I'm curious - why doesn't the NBA join the NFL in the 21st century - get better calls by allowing coaches challenges - sure it would slow down the game but who would complain about want an extra hour per game of highlights, suspense, commercial time and conecession sales?
happy New Years Lakers people
Posted by: newJtimes | December 31, 2005 at 07:23 PM
It seems like once a player is well known, he tends to get the calls more because of his reputation whether its defense or offense. If Mihm played the same exact way defensively and offensively played like Duncan, he would get more calls favoring him on defense. All i can say is for the players that get no calls is to keep on playing hard but if you want to get thru that loophole...BLOW UP YOUR SKILLZ!!! MAKE A REPUTATION!! MARKET THAT REP!!! GO LAKERS!!!!
Posted by: keno | April 27, 2006 at 12:13 AM
I am looking forward to the next season to see what Chris Mihm can do. It was unfortunate that he hurt his ankle before the playoffs. I really think he would have been a great asset to the team and the probability of them beating the Suns would have increased 10 fold.
Posted by: julia bonham | June 05, 2006 at 04:09 PM
My son would like me to let everyone know he is a Laker fan and although he likes the entire team he missed seeing Chris Mihm in the playoffs this year. GO LAKERS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Julia Bonham | June 06, 2006 at 06:01 PM
Hi Chris - Pat Mercado, compadre of your mom Nina here. We work together with an Alzheimer's repsite group here in Austin, TX (it is called The Gathering). Hang tough my friend. Much love, Pat!!
Posted by: Patricia Mercado | June 10, 2008 at 05:48 PM