Good for Phil. Phil doesn't encourage whining by his team about officiating and instead does it himself. That's good.

Someone really does need to take a stand in this situation. This fine was well worth it.

3 flagrant call adjustments in 2 games. Does anyone seriously think that sort of officiating doesn't deserve to be criticized? That's just what the league has confessed to screwing up...

TJ Simers and Mark Heisler are shameful to the LA Times. Shameful.

The officiating....What can I say? While you can make an argument that the calls aren't favoring one team over the other, there is no denying that it has been terrible. Disgraceful. No one, NO ONE, wants to watch a free throw contest. The refs (David Stern?) are disgracing the game of basketball.

But, there's nothing we can do about it now. Except win game 5, (my prediction: kobe goes off, role players show up big and the lakers win big).

GOOOOOOOOO LAKERS!!!

LG

Money well spent, if you ask me.

Why didn't George Karl get fined for complaining about the same thing after game 3? Just asking. Anyway, I just posted on the last thread, but it's just as relevant to this one so I'm posting it again...

The NBA officiating this postseason has been beyond atrocious. By my count, there have been 13 egregiously blown calls...

1) Rajon Rondo asking Brad Miller what the five fingers say to the face (called foul, league upheld (bad) call and did not upgrade to flagrant)

2) Rajon Rondo throwing Kirk Hinrich into the scorer's table (HINRICH assessed a technical for reacting, foul call on Rondo, again no flagrant upgrade from league (huh?!))

3) Kobe's elbow to Ron Artest's chest (missed altogether, later assessed as flagrant 1)

4) Kobe doing nothing and Artest freaking out like a little girl being chased by a bee (assessed as flagrant 1, later rescinded by league)

5) Artest's foul on Gasol (assessed as flagrant 2, later downgraded to flagrant 1, should have been no flagrant call)

6) Dwight Howard's elbow to Dalembert's head (called a technical foul, upgraded to flagrant 2, which = suspension)

7) Kendrick Perkins elbow to Pietrus' head (not called, league admitted was foul, but not flagrant)

8) Wright trying to intentionally foul Carmelo (missed altogether, league admitted refs missed call, cost Mavs game and, less likely, the series – series went 3-0 instead of 2-1)

9) Anthony Johnson's elbow to Mo Williams (called flagrant 1, rescinded by league)

10) Andrew Bynum's foul on Birdman (called flagrant 1, later rescinded by league)

11) Mo Williams throws ball at Dwight Howard (missed altogether, no review by league)

12) Dahntay Jones trips Kobe (missed altogether, later assessed as flagrant 1)

13) Kenyon Martin shoves Dirk Nowitzki (called foul, later upgraded to flagrant 1 PLUS fined $25,000)

14) Dahntay Jones shoves Kobe in back (called foul, later assessed as flagrant 1)

Think the NBA might need 4 refs on the floor during the playoffs...SERIOUSLY!!!

Make that 14 egregiously blown calls. I can't count, even when I've listed it out for myself.

Yeah, you really might need 4 Refs now days! I am old enough to remember 2 Refs and they didn't seem to have near the "bad" and "no" calls like today with 3 Refs. Makes one wonder?

Fining Coach Jackson for citing exact examples of inconsistencies is like fining (and jailing) the women sufferage for complaining of not having the vote. The one who looks like a donkey is not the complainer but The Man.

Yo, Stern, you the man.

Winland,

I feel for you. 8 hours and they give you that. All I can say is it's not the players. It's the coach. Everybody is so screwed up they don't know what they are doing. Even the polite Spaniard has come to his wits questioning why aren't they going down low since they have a height advantage. I will tell you right now if the Lakers win it all with a coach who is making it almost impossible to win, this will be one of the greatest teams of All-Time in Laker History.

BD

Where's Violet Palmer? Only women should be allowed to be referees. They'd be more fair.

By the way, that was a complete and utter bullcrap technical just called on Dwight Howard.

These refs are idiots.

WE ARE THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS AND WE RISE!!!!!

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!!

Lakers Today... Lakers Tomorrow... Lakers Forever.

GO LAKERS!!!!

omega,

You're not the only person who hates this NBA.

I've spoken to DOZENS of sports fans who love sports (including college basketball) and HATE the NBA.

Why?

David Stern and the officiating.

Something needs to be done.

WE ARE THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS AND WE RISE!!!!!

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!

Lakers Today... Lakers Tomorrow... Lakers Forever.

GO LAKERS!!!!

{Lakers Secret Agent Jon K. Crouched In His Bunker In The Swampy Rotting Wastes Of Northeast Ohio Surrounded On All Sides By LeBroniacs Foraging For Food In The Form Of Deep Fried Potatoes Slathered In Cheez-Whiz}

[Mission: Unleash The Bio-Chrono Weapon]

[TARGET: Chris "Birdbrain" Andersen]

Okay... here's how "The Birdman" is orientated:

Physically: He is creatively orientated. This means that the tension between attraction and repulsion is critical to his physical success.

Emotionally: He is mentally orientated. This means that the tension between trust and distrust is critical to his emotional stability.

Mentally: He is physicially orientated. This means that the tension between knowing and ignorance is critical to his mental focus and intent.

Creative: He is emotionally orientated. This means that the tension between inner peace and inner conflict is critical to his creative potential.

{I know the Kamenetsky Brothers don't like the fact that I do this, but let's not be pollyanas about this. It is a mental game as much as it is a physical game. Play it right and play to win.}

Here's how I'd play the Birdman based upon his reading:

Physical: The Birdman needs attention, as his type usually does (being attraction based). Why do you think the guy is bathed in tattoos and plays to the crowd as he does, impersonating a bird when he is successful on the court? He NEEDS to draw attention to himself and that NEED is derived from the fact that he is acting from a perceived position of deficit/unfulfillment.

So, call him on it. Note that his garrish tattoos and his showboating make him ridiculous because he IS ridiculous. He's a little child who needs attention and he'll wilt without it. So point that out with scorn and disgust, because he'll know it's true... and he'll want to hide... and he'll make mistakes.

Emotional: This isn't as easy as these people are people who are best broken gradually instead of immediately, they also thrive competitively under anger.

However, they struggle terribly when confused.

So, I'd play with his head.

I'd say, "I'm going to your right" and then go to his left.

The next time I'd say, "I'm going to your left" and then go to his left.

Don't just lie to him because it you lie to him, he will have clarity and won't trust you and will be galvanized in his opposition to you. Get him to not know if you are being honest or dishonest with him. Simply the process of not being able to gain perspective will freeze him up and he'll become impotent.

Mental: This type is simple to mess with because of their intellectual insecurity.

They need to feel knowledgeable to feel socially competent. It's part of who they are. It's not a bad thing, but it can be exploited.

With "The Birdman", I'd rub it in that he went to some two-year college in backwood Texas and probably has the knowledge base of a refridgerator. I would also talk about the complexity of The Triangle (I'd inflate the complexity, actually) and talk about how it is above him. It will make him feel insecure and undermine his aggressiveness. He'll become passive.

Creative: The Birdman's type is prone to narcissism (actually a lot of NBA players are this type.)

So, when this type plays "the tough man" it means they are over-compensating for something. In contrast, deep inside they feel sad and vulnerable inside.

Something as simple as (right before the beginning of a play) "All those tattoos... you must feel really sad inside."

Or...

"So those drugs you were taking before your suspension, it was because you felt really bad about yourself, wasn't it?"

It will take at least a half-second off his reaction speed and then throw him off his rhythm and, perhaps, take him off his game for an extended period.

This type tends to inflate personal value, so remind him that he's really not that important. It's not all about him... as he secretly believes it is.

WE ARE THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS AND WE RISE!!!!

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!!

Lakers Today... Lakers Tomorrow... Lakers Forever.

GO LAKERS!!!

Puddle-

Nice list, but you forgot the egregiously missed call during the jump ball at the end of Game 2, when J.R. Smith cut through circle illegally. Also, Trevor was then pushed from behind, causing the turnover, and costing the Lakers a chance to tie the game

David Stern knows who he wants in the finals. Its up to the Lakers to prove him wrong. After watching tonights game, the refs should have called a tech re: anderson and Howard. That was so obvious it stunk. Stern has control of the entire finals. Ask his refs. They know where there paycheck comes from. Stern needs to be knocked off his throne. Tomorrow will be the day. Lakers win! And the next game also. Lakers vs Orlando. Are you ready???

just ridiculous. some calls are just out of my mind. it goes both ways. some bad calls for nuggets, some bad calls for lakers. how much contact can we see from these players these days?? almost none. refs need to understand that it's a physical sport. this is not some kind of cute tea party we're having here. but as for jone's trip on kobe.. that's just plain dirty. shove from the back? you kidding me? these actions by jones are not only unsportsmanlike, but they are completely dangerous.

Phil, way to speak out the truth. I'm shocked and it's unfortunate that the NBA has fined you for speaking the truth about the refs. The rest of the world sees eye-to-eye with you on this.

on horrible reffing and NBA management-
the NBA: where amazing really does happen.

just really amazes me.

i dont even feel like watching the playoffs anymore.

Sure, the officiating has been terrible, but the Lakers lost Game 4 mostly by themselves, starting from the first minutes of the first quarter. While the refereeing has sucked, well... so have we.

In Game 4, we simply got out-rebounded, which is embarrassing considering that we have the 2 7-footers + 1 6'10" (Odom), while their tallest guy is 6'10. Outrebounded by about 20??? With 20 offensive rebounds???

If you've got the height advantage, Rebounding is simply a matter of Effort. Of course, tired legs (Gasol), braces (Bynum), and sore backs (Odom) will have their effect as well - which, if true, doesn't bode well for the remaining postseason.

Radical Problems require Radical Solutions.
I think PJ either needs to change, or be changed out. He hasn't made that many radical adjustments, and the Lakers are in need of some. Instead, he keeps on doing the same things over & over, but hoping for a different result - which is the definition of insanity. Trying to let the players like starter Fish play through their slumps (no time for that), staying with the Cold Hands, not calling Timeouts (although he's been doing more of that lately), and not giving any apparent Direct Orders (or else nobody's been following them), like give Gasol more touches, or Vujacic Stop shooting contested & off the dribble Kobe wannabe shots, or Odom rebound.

PJ is too cool, calm, laid-back, self-assured, 'cavalier', and "invincible"... which, apparently, might have rubbed off on the team. Team Attitude is a reflection of Leadership.

Whether we make it to the Finals, Win or Lose, I think management should seriously consider letting PJ go. An experienced coach with 9 rings shouldn't have let a 65+ Win team come to this.

Blaming the Refs is just short-term scapegoating for deeper underlying problems of the Team, which itself is heavily influenced by Coaching.

I had a conversation with a fellow lakerholic at del amo mall in torrance and we both agreed that if the cavs win this game or we see the refs do all they can without bluntly appearing to pick a winner,that would be a smack in the face of all fans. Last .5 seconds of regulation was awful,I understand the logic of letting them play but come on now. So 3-1 orlando and 2-2 lakers/denver. This is getting real serious now,I feel like I'm doing all the work and the actual players are playing sub par to their abilitites. This is something else. The 2 games where the scores aren't close we're back to back,so it's safe to assume tonights game will be neck to neck. On another note,there is a store in del amo mall on hawthorne blvd and carson has a store with a whole lot of cheap laker gear steming from auto decals,plates to jerseys and the big laker hands. Anyway,game after a loss which means another win. Let's just hope we can pull it off in a matter that can carry on to the next game. Remember two games till the finals. Go Lakers!

I think we frequently miss the reason for why the refs make so many bad calls. The league is not interested in seeing any two teams in the NBA finals, except the two team that will bring them the most money. Additionally, the conference finals are the best example of how the league tries to make money. It is in their financial interest to try to extend the series a long a they can. Now, this does not mean that they are stupid enough to blow the obvious calls. At the end of each game you will see the losing team given several call to try to make the stats look respectable. Also, like Phil Jackson was trying to say, the early calls are supposed to set the standard for how the game will be called. This is another way the refs can manipulate the game because they can the way the call the fouls at any time in order to put one team on its heels.

The only way to truly see what is happening is to follow the financial interests. The league is not the only one interested in prolonging the series'. Even the commentators have an interest in seeing more games. The whole NBA playoffs is about money. The league has been burned before, getting stuck with teams, in the finals, that do not hold the interest of the viewers, therefore, losing money.