CelticsStrong
Around the League => Around the NBA => Topic started by: D Dub on February 23, 2013, 12:59:47 AM
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Watch what happens over the next 20 games. Getting a taste w/ Lamarcus being hit early & often with calls they won't make on Dwight. And my favorite, Artest fouls Batum on the arm to make the ball go out. No call, then reviewed to give LA the ball back.
League is about to do everything it can to get their cash cow franchise to the 8 spot.
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FT attempts:
LA 32, Port 12
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
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Calls down the stretch were bad. Particularly Batum out of bounds play where MWP clearly fouled him, then the Batum three point shot reviewed and still called a 2... frustrating...
On another note, NBA tv has some of the worst commentators imaginable.
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
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Calls down the stretch were bad. Particularly Batum out of bounds play where MWP clearly fouled him, then the Batum three point shot reviewed and still called a 2... frustrating...
On another note, NBA tv has some of the worst commentators imaginable.
It's clearly a 3... what's the sense of reviewing it if your going to overturn a correct call... and Matthews was clearly fouled in front if ref
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Well, the same happens to players like James Harden, Kevin Martin, etc as well. You can't say Kobe's not good at drawing fouls. There was probably a couple bad calls, but it isn't naive to disagree with your notion.
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Yep. sterNBA is at it again.
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The death of Jerry Buss made them "determined". Notice how the media are putting drama after the owner's death.
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Yep. sterNBA is at it again.
Houston and Golden State, the two teams playing tonight that the Lakers are chasing in the playoff race, both won. Golden State won in an OT game.
So the Lakers gained ground on neither team. What an awesome conspiracy concocted by the NBA. Simply genius!
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Yep. sterNBA is at it again.
Houston and Golden State, the two teams playing tonight that the Lakers are chasing in the playoff race, both won. Golden State won in an OT game.
So the Lakers gained ground on neither team. What an awesome conspiracy concocted by the NBA. Simply genius!
Doesn't matter. Wait for it, Houston and Golden State and Utah will lose most of its games in the next month or so.
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Please answer me two questions - since I'm naive:
1) Why didn't this start in October? Why make a marquee franchise look awful for months and drag it through the mud?
2) Why would the NBA let Golden State and Houston win tonight (in loseable games for both)? To get into the playoffs, the Lakers have to gain ground on the teams ahead of them. That's how the playoffs work.
Bonus questions -
Why have the Lakers had such poor playoff showings in the last two years? Did the refs forget the conspiracy?
Do you think the Celtics have ever gained a benefit in calls in their long history when playing against a team with less superstar players?
So many questions come to mind when the end goal of a conspiracy is to make a team look awful and then hand them an 8 seed.
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Yep. sterNBA is at it again.
Houston and Golden State, the two teams playing tonight that the Lakers are chasing in the playoff race, both won. Golden State won in an OT game.
So the Lakers gained ground on neither team. What an awesome conspiracy concocted by the NBA. Simply genius!
Doesn't matter. Wait for it, Houston and Golden State and Utah will lose most of its games in the next month or so.
Do you think that Houston/Golden State/Utah aren't making the playoffs for actual basketball related reasons or because you think the NBA is rigged?
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I didn't watch, but I saw some people (Blazers and non Blazers fans) get mad about the refs in the Lakers game.
While I was sad to see San Antonio lose, I was happy to see Golden State win and was happy to see Houston win.
I hope they both along with Utah and the other bottom teams keep playing and winning so that the Lakers miss the playoffs.
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I'm with celtsfan84 on this one, even though he told me last summer that Brook Lopez was only worth MLE money. ;)
While there were some terrible calls tonight, I think it has more to do with the Lakers being the home team with crowd influence than "the fix is in".
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Calls down the stretch were bad. Particularly Batum out of bounds play where MWP clearly fouled him, then the Batum three point shot reviewed and still called a 2... frustrating...
On another note, NBA tv has some of the worst commentators imaginable.
It's clearly a 3... what's the sense of reviewing it if your going to overturn a correct call... and Matthews was clearly fouled in front if ref
Really frustrating because we were robbed of a potential epic finish
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Another thing, the Lakers will make the playoffs. Not because of the refs but because of their talent and the fact that they're finally playing with some urgency.
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Another thing, the Lakers will make the playoffs. Not because of the refs but because of their talent and the fact that they're finally playing with some urgency.
I disagree. The Rockets, Warriors, and Jazz are all legit teams. The Blazers aren't going down without a fight either.
There's no guarantee they'll make the playoffs anymore.
You saw Golden State tonight. The Rockets are a top 5 scoring team in the NBA - they'll get their wins. The Jazz have a good, well balanced roster w/ Mo Williams coming back soon. Odds are not in the Lakers' favor.
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Another thing, the Lakers will make the playoffs. Not because of the refs but because of their talent and the fact that they're finally playing with some urgency.
I disagree. The Rockets, Warriors, and Jazz are all legit teams. The Blazers aren't going down without a fight either.
There's no guarantee they'll make the playoffs anymore.
You saw Golden State tonight. The Rockets are a top 5 scoring team in the NBA - they'll get their wins. The Jazz have a good, well balanced roster w/ Mo Williams coming back soon. Odds are not in the Lakers' favor.
Yeah I hear ya but, just watch how it will play out.
Lakers will go on 7 to 10 game winning streaks.
As much as Stern wants the Lakers to make the playoffs.
I'm predicting (hoping) they will be 1 or 2 games behind the 8th seed.
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Well actualy it has something to do with the way they play recently. They been giving the rock to Dwight more, and teams has to double him down low. So it opens up much more space for cutting, and also every team likes to foul terrible FT shooter like Howard.
Lakers are veteran team, they know that the time is now to win gamen, and all little bs that was going on inside the team, chemistry issues, they forgot all of that because they are playoff team and they are the lakers, so of course they wan't to be in the playoffs...
All in all, i don't think so that the league and refs are in there helping them to get that eight spot. I say eight spot because i don't think so thet they can catch houston. Jazz will drop down...i wish i was wrong but they will catch it..
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Yep. sterNBA is at it again.
Houston and Golden State, the two teams playing tonight that the Lakers are chasing in the playoff race, both won. Golden State won in an OT game.
So the Lakers gained ground on neither team. What an awesome conspiracy concocted by the NBA. Simply genius!
Doesn't matter. Wait for it, Houston and Golden State and Utah will lose most of its games in the next month or so.
Do you think that Houston/Golden State/Utah aren't making the playoffs for actual basketball related reasons or because you think the NBA is rigged?
I'm with celts fan in this argument.
I also think the lakers will make the playoffs simply because they are better than the warriors, rockets, or jazz.
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Or maybe they're just playing better...? Look, I'm as big on the Celtics and as down on the Lakers as one can be, but a team with Nash, Kobe and Howard is going to start playing better at some point (despite the injury to Pau and the abominable D'Antoni choice). They win a few games and all of a sudden Stern is trying to force them in? Slow down. Yeah, the Lakers, Heat, Knicks, Celtics (much to your shock), Bulls, etc. are going to be on the right side of some bad calls. But I bet you the FT differential in last night's game was more the skill of the Lakers, and the skill of guys like Kobe to draw fouls, as a previous posted mentioned.
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Unless Stern tells a ref to take a baseball bat to James Harden's knee, the Lakers aren't making the playoffs.
Houston has 24 games left. If they go 12-12, the Lakers will have to go 17-9 to pass them. Houston has only 10 road games remaining, including trips to Sacto, Phoenix twice, Orlando, and Dallas. I'm guessing that the Rockets win at least 14 more games, forcing the Lakers to go 19-7. It will be stunning if the Lakers can put that many wins together with a team that's can easily be derailed by more injuries to Nash and Howard.
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In Dallas.
FTA: LA 31, Dal 19
And an unwarranted T against Dirk down the stretch for complaining after an obvious blown call.
I think the league has just as much urgency as LA does right now. The storyline (Buss, Howard, underdog etc) is gold, without them ratings drop exponentially.
So, I'm going to keep track of these last games. Interested to see if they out-FT everyone they play and coninue to get benefit of calls like we've now seen against Batum & Dirk in successive games.
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Just saw that the last game for the season is Houston @ LA Lakers...
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FT attempts
Memphis 29, Orlando 9
I know everyone has fun with Laker conspiracy theories, but games like this happen every night, like the example cited above. Did the league conspire to have Memphis win tonight?
Also, wouldn't it have made much more sense for the league to start this weeks (or months) ago to put the Lakers in a better seed and in less danger of a Round 1 exit (if they do make the playoffs)?
A conspiracy starting in late February to get a top franchise a #8 seed is a pretty weak conspiracy.
Don't be naive
Calls against Boston were absurd the other night too. Kobe had more fouls on him than did any of the Celtics combined for awhile during the first half of the game
Yep. sterNBA is at it again.
Houston and Golden State, the two teams playing tonight that the Lakers are chasing in the playoff race, both won. Golden State won in an OT game.
So the Lakers gained ground on neither team. What an awesome conspiracy concocted by the NBA. Simply genius!
Doesn't matter. Wait for it, Houston and Golden State and Utah will lose most of its games in the next month or so.
Do you think that Houston/Golden State/Utah aren't making the playoffs for actual basketball related reasons or because you think the NBA is rigged?
I'm with celts fan in this argument.
I also think the lakers will make the playoffs simply because they are better than the warriors, rockets, or jazz.
I've made my argument before and I am not afraid to bold it again.
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Anyone who thinks the refs do not influence games don't know the rules. They blow calls all the time and influence games.
NBA where refs matter, a lot.
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Anyone who thinks the refs do not influence games don't know the rules. They blow calls all the time and influence games.
NBA where refs matter, a lot.
Yep.
Agreed.
The sterNBA wants a good story.
Whats a better plot than, Buss death, Howard in LA, Kobe chasing MJ, Elite franchise on the verge of not making the playoffs..
There will be a ton of blown calls in the Lakers favor.
If ya'll don't believe it, you're blind.
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Anyone who thinks the refs do not influence games don't know the rules. They blow calls all the time and influence games.
NBA where refs matter, a lot.
Yep.
Agreed.
The sterNBA wants a good story.
Whats a better plot than, Buss death, Howard in LA, Kobe chasing MJ, Elite franchise on the verge of not making the playoffs..
There will be a ton of blown calls in the Lakers favor.
If ya'll don't believe it, you're blind.
So are you saying that the Lakers are now going to win the championship? Because a first round exit would make for a pretty weak and pointless conspiracy.
Odd that the "rigged" and "fixed" NBA has two Western Conference perennial powers in San Antonio and Oklahoma City, two of its smallest markets, huh?
Why has the NBA sent San Antonio to the Finals 4 times since 1999? The Lakers draw much better ratings than the Spurs.
For all of the conspiracy theorists, can you explain what the actual conspiracy is? When did it start? Who is involved? Why is it so ineffective? Why did the NBA decide to have the Lakers lose so quickly in each of the last two years? Is Boston involved? Why do you watch "fixed" games? So many questions, so little answers.
Calling someone else blind doesn't explain the conspiracy. Please explain.
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Yawn
Why do you watch if you believe this to be true?
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Conspiracies are just excuses.
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In Dallas.
FTA: LA 31, Dal 19
And an unwarranted T against Dirk down the stretch for complaining after an obvious blown call.
I think the league has just as much urgency as LA does right now. The storyline (Buss, Howard, underdog etc) is gold, without them ratings drop exponentially.
So, I'm going to keep track of these last games. Interested to see if they out-FT everyone they play and coninue to get benefit of calls like we've now seen against Batum & Dirk in successive games.
If any team's opponent has Howard on its active roster and DOESN'T lose the FT disparity, that team definitely didn't play properly.
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Yesterday's Lakers game featured some classic phantom whistles for the purple & gold. Yes, it made the difference in the game. If you didn't watch, then you might question it, but I watched and it was plain as day.
1. Metta fouls Dirk on a jumper (clear foul but no call)
2. Dirk gets technical foul for reacting to no call (weak at best tech)
3. Mayo gets called for foul defending Kobe on a fast break (didn't look like he touched him - good Defense)
4. Mayo gets technical foul for reacting (weaker than that weak tech on Dirk)
5. Dirk loses ball out of bounds on a subsequent possession after reach in foul on Metta (no call - ball goes the to Lakers)
My guess is this amounts to a 6-8 pt swing. In a tight game, that's all the cushion it takes.
I'm not tying this to any big conspiracy, but I've seen it before and I'll see it again.
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Yesterday's Lakers game featured some classic phantom whistles for the purple & gold. Yes, it made the difference in the game. If you didn't watch, then you might question it, but I watched and it was plain as day.
1. Metta fouls Dirk on a jumper (clear foul but no call)
2. Dirk gets technical foul for reacting to no call (weak at best tech)
3. Mayo gets called for foul defending Kobe on a fast break (didn't look like he touched him - good Defense)
4. Mayo gets technical foul for reacting (weaker than that weak tech on Dirk)
5. Dirk loses ball out of bounds on a subsequent possession after reach in foul on Metta (no call - ball goes the to Lakers)
My guess is this amounts to a 6-8 pt swing. In a tight game, that's all the cushion it takes.
I'm not tying this to any big conspiracy, but I've seen it before and I'll see it again.
I hear that.
There are definitely biases towards Big Market teams, and teams with history.
The Lakers is one of the teams that had the most benefit from this.
The NBA will try its best to get the Lakers to the playoffs because that means they will make more money and it will make for a good story.
It doesn't mean that they will win it all. But it will still make the league a lot of money selling Laker playoff tickets.
The NBA clearly favors teams.
Again, If ya'll don't see that. You're blind.
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Anyone who thinks the refs do not influence games don't know the rules. They blow calls all the time and influence games.
NBA where refs matter, a lot.
Yep.
Agreed.
The sterNBA wants a good story.
Whats a better plot than, Buss death, Howard in LA, Kobe chasing MJ, Elite franchise on the verge of not making the playoffs..
There will be a ton of blown calls in the Lakers favor.
If ya'll don't believe it, you're blind.
So are you saying that the Lakers are now going to win the championship? Because a first round exit would make for a pretty weak and pointless conspiracy.
Odd that the "rigged" and "fixed" NBA has two Western Conference perennial powers in San Antonio and Oklahoma City, two of its smallest markets, huh?
Why has the NBA sent San Antonio to the Finals 4 times since 1999? The Lakers draw much better ratings than the Spurs.
For all of the conspiracy theorists, can you explain what the actual conspiracy is? When did it start? Who is involved? Why is it so ineffective? Why did the NBA decide to have the Lakers lose so quickly in each of the last two years? Is Boston involved? Why do you watch "fixed" games? So many questions, so little answers.
Calling someone else blind doesn't explain the conspiracy. Please explain.
Response to your reply.
1. I never said that the Lakers would win the Championship, I said that the league will try to at least get them to the playoffs, because that will make them money, and make for a good story. Just because you don't "win it all" does not mean that its a pathetic or failed conspiracy. I mean if you really watch basketball, not just the Celtics, you will know that the NBA favors teams, all the time. Even the schedules are proof of this. Then you mix that up with tons of questionable officiating. If you don't see that, you're blind.
2. OKC and SAN ANTONIO. Yes you are right, they are smaller market teams, but, They are actually good teams. San Antonio is a great organization and has one of the best coaches in the league. They have an amazing scouting team as well. They were in the finals multiple times because they are a really good team. It doesn't matter if the Lakers had better ratings, San Antonio was simply dominant in the years that they've been in the Finals.
OKC is a great new team as well, yes, smaller market, but they have the best turn out for every game. They are always sold out (that means the NBA gets money). They have the 2nd best player in the NBA, and they got to the finals fair and square. And what a better way to finish the season off with the 2 best players in the NBA going Head to Head for the championship. Smaller Market teams specially in the West are not weak like they are in the East.
The Lakers lost so "quickly" because the teams that they've faced were the better team. Dallas was on fire, plus the Miami Heat vs Dallas Mavericks rivalry was a good angle.
Dirk finally getting his was a great for the NBA.
Again, If you don't see the biases towards certain teams, the purposely blown calls, questionable officiating, even biased announcers, you are blind.
I still watch because, I love basketball and I'm a huge fan of the Celtics. Period.
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Anyone who thinks the refs do not influence games don't know the rules. They blow calls all the time and influence games.
NBA where refs matter, a lot.
Yep.
Agreed.
The sterNBA wants a good story.
Whats a better plot than, Buss death, Howard in LA, Kobe chasing MJ, Elite franchise on the verge of not making the playoffs..
There will be a ton of blown calls in the Lakers favor.
If ya'll don't believe it, you're blind.
So are you saying that the Lakers are now going to win the championship? Because a first round exit would make for a pretty weak and pointless conspiracy.
Odd that the "rigged" and "fixed" NBA has two Western Conference perennial powers in San Antonio and Oklahoma City, two of its smallest markets, huh?
Why has the NBA sent San Antonio to the Finals 4 times since 1999? The Lakers draw much better ratings than the Spurs.
For all of the conspiracy theorists, can you explain what the actual conspiracy is? When did it start? Who is involved? Why is it so ineffective? Why did the NBA decide to have the Lakers lose so quickly in each of the last two years? Is Boston involved? Why do you watch "fixed" games? So many questions, so little answers.
Calling someone else blind doesn't explain the conspiracy. Please explain.
Response to your reply.
1. I never said that the Lakers would win the Championship, I said that the league will try to at least get them to the playoffs, because that will make them money, and make for a good story. Just because you don't "win it all" does not mean that its a pathetic or failed conspiracy. I mean if you really watch basketball, not just the Celtics, you will know that the NBA favors teams, all the time. Even the schedules are proof of this. Then you mix that up with tons of questionable officiating. If you don't see that, you're blind.
2. OKC and SAN ANTONIO. Yes you are right, they are smaller market teams, but, They are actually good teams. San Antonio is a great organization and has one of the best coaches in the league. They have an amazing scouting team as well. They were in the finals multiple times because they are a really good team. It doesn't matter if the Lakers had better ratings, San Antonio was simply dominant in the years that they've been in the Finals.
OKC is a great new team as well, yes, smaller market, but they have the best turn out for every game. They are always sold out (that means the NBA gets money). They have the 2nd best player in the NBA, and they got to the finals fair and square. And what a better way to finish the season off with the 2 best players in the NBA going Head to Head for the championship. Smaller Market teams specially in the West are not weak like they are in the East.
The Lakers lost so "quickly" because the teams that they've faced were the better team. Dallas was on fire, plus the Miami Heat vs Dallas Mavericks rivalry was a good angle.
Dirk finally getting his was a great for the NBA.
Again, If you don't see the biases towards certain teams, the purposely blown calls, questionable officiating, even biased announcers, you are blind.
I still watch because, I love basketball and I'm a huge fan of the Celtics. Period.
If we take your assumption to be correct, does this also mean that the Cs get the same benefits from the refs?
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Conspiracy nonsense or not, I believe it. Why? Because it's logical and the NBA is the NBA.
It is evident that the NBA would want the Fakers in the playoffs, especially considering Kobe's advanced (by playing years) age. Let's not also forget that Dwight Howard and Steve Nash are on the team, and stars sell the NBA product. Oh, and the Fakers are a top-3 NBA market that brings in millions of dollars with each playoff run.
Look, NBA basketball is the easiest American sport for the officials to affect the outcome of an individual game, and therefore a playoff series/seeding. It's almost on-par with International Soccer.
Every pick could be called an offensive foul. Defensive or offensive three seconds could be called almost every time down the court. Almost every contested drive to the basket could be called a blocking foul or charge (you decide). Oh, and let's not forget about traveling and palming the ball. Come on. A few ticky-tack calls here or there can easily affect the outcome, especially if they're made at an opportune time.
But, not every bad call will come across "clear as day." More so, the bad calls occur in the shadows and are spread throughout the game.
Refs aren't stupid. [Typing that made me throw up a little.] But, seriously, they're not stupid. Refs know that too many games with free throw discrepancies in the 3-to-1 range will draw ire from fans and (possibly) the media.
Refs subtlety go about affecting games by getting certain players in foul trouble (so they have to sit at irregular times) and certain teams in foul trouble (so more free throws are shot - double bonus, anyone). But, more often than not, the refs do everything they can to level the field goals shot once the game is already in hand. That usually makes everything look kosher, unless, of course, you watched the game and saw how the refs went about their job.
The Fakers were already the beneficiary of one of the worst con jobs in the NBA during the past fifteen years.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_NBA_Playoffs#.281.29_Sacramento_Kings_vs._.283.29_Los_Angeles_Lakers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_NBA_Playoffs#.281.29_Sacramento_Kings_vs._.283.29_Los_Angeles_Lakers)
My guess is you won't be seeing too many games with huge free throw discrepancies, but you'll see plenty of games where the refs lean strongly toward the Fakers, and the Fakers are given the benefit of the doubt too often. It's easy with guys like Howard and Bryant, because Howard is so big you could call a foul on his opponent every time and Bryant is so revered that if his shot doesn't fall it must have been a foul.
Now, in defense of the non-conspiracy theorists, the Fakers will still have to score some points and play some defense, but the refs will make it that much easier for them to make games... and that's all that matters.
Oh, the Heat will undoubtedly get to the NBA Finals this season. It's been determined by the league.
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#1 - The Lakers are going to make the playoffs, because they have Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Steve Nash.
#2 - The Lakers are going to be a title contender once the playoffs start... because they have Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Steve Nash.
No use crying about it. It's happening. You don't keep down the best big man alive and a top 3 shooting guard. Elite bigs and elite scoring win championships in this league.
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I hear that.
There are definitely biases towards Big Market teams, and teams with history.
The Lakers is one of the teams that had the most benefit from this.
Look at the teams in the league right now that are leading in free throw attempts per game.
1) Lakers
2) OKC
3) Denver
4) Charlotte
5) Minnesota
6) Houston
7) Utah
8) Brooklyn
9) Clippers
10) Detroit
Yes, the Lakers get a lot of free throws. But three of the top 10 teams in free throw attempts are in the lottery, with only OKC and the Clippers being real contenders.
Look at the worst free throw teams now ...
30) Orlando
29) Philadelphia
28) New Orleans
27) Atlanta
26) Phoenix
25) Washington
24) Memphis
23) Portland
22) Boston
21) New York
20) San Antonio
The team with the league's best record is one of the worst teams at getting to the line. Two of the East's top teams in Atlanta and New York are also low on the list, and Memphis is another strong play-off threat there.
There is no clear relationship between getting to the line and winning games. This trend extends across the past several seasons. Yes, there are teams that get to the line a lot and win, and there are those that don't. But just because a team gets a lot of foul calls does not automatically let them win games, which makes any perceived conspiracy on your part miraculously ineffective.
Now, look over the last several seasons. I am going back to 2003-2004, because that is as far back as I can get the numbers through a casual search, and I don't feel like doing anything more involved.
Since the 2003-2004 season, the Lakers have attempted approximately 20,226 free throws (I say approximately because I back-tracked their per game averages for the number of games they played, and rounded, so I might be off by a few).
That is 4th in the league during that span. Behind Denver, Utah, and Orlando. Rounding out the top 10 since 2003-4:
Clippers
Sonics/OKC
Sacramento
Miami
Cleveland
Indiana
It is worth noting that the Clippers, OKC, and Indiana, although strong teams now, were not perennially strong in the past decade.
The worst free throw teams since 2003? Well, San Antonio is 27th, and how have they been doing? Phoenix is 26th, and though they suck now, for good chunk of this past decade they were a serious contender (at times favorite).
The Bobcats have taken more free throws in the past decade than the Mavericks, who were a title favorite in Dirk's prime, and won a title recently (and Dirk is arguably the greatest free throw shooter in league history).
By the way, the league average for free throws in the past decade is 19,206, and the worst mark (belonging to New Orleans) is 17,338.
So the total spread between best and worst over the past decade is 5083 free throws, which works out to be 6 free throw attempts per game. The difference between the Lakers over this span and the league average works out to be 1.05 free throw attempt per game.
So, over the past decade, the Lakers have only managed to get about one extra free throw attempt for every game over the league average for this span.
Quite a conspiracy you got going on. ::)
The numbers don't lie, baby, so get off the smug high horse and stop calling us all blind for not believing in easily falsifiable accusations of rigging.
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I hear that.
There are definitely biases towards Big Market teams, and teams with history.
The Lakers is one of the teams that had the most benefit from this.
SNIPPED FOR SPACE...
So, over the past decade, the Lakers have only managed to get about one extra free throw attempt for every game over the league average for this span.
Quite a conspiracy you got going on. ::)
The numbers don't lie, baby, so get off the smug high horse and stop calling us all blind for not believing in easily falsifiable accusations of rigging.
No but you see you have to watch the games, or some YouTube clips of snippets of the games, and notice all the calls that favor the teams the league likes, and ignore all the calls that favor the other teams, and interpret anything ambiguous as clearly indicating foul play. Or just read box scores and decide any free throw discrepancy = deliberate rigging of the game, unless it goes the wrong way, in which case you'll know the refs are just cheating more sneakily. Or just talk to someone who feels the same way as you. Then and only then will you see the objective truth.
It's like how at the end of the last decade savvy fans knew the league was always fixing things for a Kobe-LeBron finals. Some naysayers tried to pooh-pooh it, but just look at how things turned out! You can't just rely on flimsy things like "stats" and "facts" to unravel things like this. Rigging is much too subtle to show up there, and so blatantly obvious that anyone who can't see it is delusional.
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And a TP for you, sir; I cannot stop laughing.
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Anyone who thinks the refs do not influence games don't know the rules. They blow calls all the time and influence games.
NBA where refs matter, a lot.
Yep.
Agreed.
The sterNBA wants a good story.
Whats a better plot than, Buss death, Howard in LA, Kobe chasing MJ, Elite franchise on the verge of not making the playoffs..
There will be a ton of blown calls in the Lakers favor.
If ya'll don't believe it, you're blind.
So are you saying that the Lakers are now going to win the championship? Because a first round exit would make for a pretty weak and pointless conspiracy.
Odd that the "rigged" and "fixed" NBA has two Western Conference perennial powers in San Antonio and Oklahoma City, two of its smallest markets, huh?
Why has the NBA sent San Antonio to the Finals 4 times since 1999? The Lakers draw much better ratings than the Spurs.
For all of the conspiracy theorists, can you explain what the actual conspiracy is? When did it start? Who is involved? Why is it so ineffective? Why did the NBA decide to have the Lakers lose so quickly in each of the last two years? Is Boston involved? Why do you watch "fixed" games? So many questions, so little answers.
Calling someone else blind doesn't explain the conspiracy. Please explain.
Response to your reply.
1. I never said that the Lakers would win the Championship, I said that the league will try to at least get them to the playoffs, because that will make them money, and make for a good story. Just because you don't "win it all" does not mean that its a pathetic or failed conspiracy. I mean if you really watch basketball, not just the Celtics, you will know that the NBA favors teams, all the time. Even the schedules are proof of this. Then you mix that up with tons of questionable officiating. If you don't see that, you're blind.
2. OKC and SAN ANTONIO. Yes you are right, they are smaller market teams, but, They are actually good teams. San Antonio is a great organization and has one of the best coaches in the league. They have an amazing scouting team as well. They were in the finals multiple times because they are a really good team. It doesn't matter if the Lakers had better ratings, San Antonio was simply dominant in the years that they've been in the Finals.
OKC is a great new team as well, yes, smaller market, but they have the best turn out for every game. They are always sold out (that means the NBA gets money). They have the 2nd best player in the NBA, and they got to the finals fair and square. And what a better way to finish the season off with the 2 best players in the NBA going Head to Head for the championship. Smaller Market teams specially in the West are not weak like they are in the East.
The Lakers lost so "quickly" because the teams that they've faced were the better team. Dallas was on fire, plus the Miami Heat vs Dallas Mavericks rivalry was a good angle.
Dirk finally getting his was a great for the NBA.
Again, If you don't see the biases towards certain teams, the purposely blown calls, questionable officiating, even biased announcers, you are blind.
I still watch because, I love basketball and I'm a huge fan of the Celtics. Period.
If we take your assumption to be correct, does this also mean that the Cs get the same benefits from the refs?
You could say that. But, the 07-08 Celtics team was a beast of a team. I would say they did not really need much help from the League.
Plus what a great story from being the worst in the league to being champions the next year, KG Pierce and Allen playing together coming from different losing situations getting a championship.
PS. Watch more NBA games, try and catch the Lakers, Heat, Clippers, OKC games you'll see what I mean.
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A game to watch for "conspiracy potential" would be this upcoming Wednesdays game with Golden State in New York. Tonight, New York rests while Golden State plays in Indiana. Just NBA scheduling for you. Golden State has the onus of hanging onto their playoff spot since they do not get there very often.
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Stats can be argued either way. Revenue figures are more concrete, and the NBA simply makes more money when the Lebron's and Kobe's are the storyline.
Another example. Go back and watch games 1 and 2 of the ECF from last year. The NBA needed Bron to get back to the Finals in the worst way. Those 2 games had it all: early foul trouble for Pierce, bad techs against the C's, and the overtime face-slap-no-call with Rondo. FWIW, I felt games 3-7 were called pretty fair. That said, had we taken both those first two or split, very likely we win --leaving the new face of the league, Bron, mired in failure.
Fast forward to this year, the Lakers are now dominating all storylines. You don't think the NBA stands to gain a major revenue boost if they make the playoffs?
Not saying this stuff is pre-determined, but a little momentum swing here or there can go a long way.
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Stats can be argued either way. Revenue figures are more concrete, and the NBA simply makes more money when the Lebron's and Kobe's are the storyline.
Another example. Go back and watch games 1 and 2 of the ECF from last year. The NBA needed Bron to get back to the Finals in the worst way. Those 2 games had it all: early foul trouble for Pierce, bad techs against the C's, and the overtime face-slap-no-call with Rondo. FWIW, I felt games 3-7 were called pretty fair. That said, had we taken both those first two or split, very likely we win --leaving the new face of the league, Bron, mired in failure.
Fast forward to this year, the Lakers are now dominating all storylines. You don't think the NBA stands to gain a major revenue boost if they make the playoffs?
Not saying this stuff is pre-determined, but a little momentum swing here or there can go a long way.
Yessir. Agreed.
That was ours, we got robbed of the chance to get #18
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Sooo, can we agree that the pretty egregious non-suspension of Ibaka for getting to 3rd base with Blake Griffin kinda punches a hole in this theory?
Seems like if the league was tilting things to get the Lakers in the playoffs they would have made the obvious decision to keep Ibaka out.
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I hear that.
There are definitely biases towards Big Market teams, and teams with history.
The Lakers is one of the teams that had the most benefit from this.
Look at the teams in the league right now that are leading in free throw attempts per game.
1) Lakers
2) OKC
3) Denver
4) Charlotte
5) Minnesota
6) Houston
7) Utah
8) Brooklyn
9) Clippers
10) Detroit
Yes, the Lakers get a lot of free throws. But three of the top 10 teams in free throw attempts are in the lottery, with only OKC and the Clippers being real contenders.
Look at the worst free throw teams now ...
30) Orlando
29) Philadelphia
28) New Orleans
27) Atlanta
26) Phoenix
25) Washington
24) Memphis
23) Portland
22) Boston
21) New York
20) San Antonio
The team with the league's best record is one of the worst teams at getting to the line. Two of the East's top teams in Atlanta and New York are also low on the list, and Memphis is another strong play-off threat there.
There is no clear relationship between getting to the line and winning games. This trend extends across the past several seasons. Yes, there are teams that get to the line a lot and win, and there are those that don't. But just because a team gets a lot of foul calls does not automatically let them win games, which makes any perceived conspiracy on your part miraculously ineffective.
Now, look over the last several seasons. I am going back to 2003-2004, because that is as far back as I can get the numbers through a casual search, and I don't feel like doing anything more involved.
Since the 2003-2004 season, the Lakers have attempted approximately 20,226 free throws (I say approximately because I back-tracked their per game averages for the number of games they played, and rounded, so I might be off by a few).
That is 4th in the league during that span. Behind Denver, Utah, and Orlando. Rounding out the top 10 since 2003-4:
Clippers
Sonics/OKC
Sacramento
Miami
Cleveland
Indiana
It is worth noting that the Clippers, OKC, and Indiana, although strong teams now, were not perennially strong in the past decade.
The worst free throw teams since 2003? Well, San Antonio is 27th, and how have they been doing? Phoenix is 26th, and though they suck now, for good chunk of this past decade they were a serious contender (at times favorite).
The Bobcats have taken more free throws in the past decade than the Mavericks, who were a title favorite in Dirk's prime, and won a title recently (and Dirk is arguably the greatest free throw shooter in league history).
By the way, the league average for free throws in the past decade is 19,206, and the worst mark (belonging to New Orleans) is 17,338.
So the total spread between best and worst over the past decade is 5083 free throws, which works out to be 6 free throw attempts per game. The difference between the Lakers over this span and the league average works out to be 1.05 free throw attempt per game.
So, over the past decade, the Lakers have only managed to get about one extra free throw attempt for every game over the league average for this span.
Quite a conspiracy you got going on. ::)
The numbers don't lie, baby, so get off the smug high horse and stop calling us all blind for not believing in easily falsifiable accusations of rigging.
Great great post. TP.
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Sooo, can we agree that the pretty egregious non-suspension of Ibaka for getting to 3rd base with Blake Griffin kinda punches a hole in this theory?
Seems like if the league was tilting things to get the Lakers in the playoffs they would have made the obvious decision to keep Ibaka out.
I personally dont think Ibaka deserved a suspension. I dont think he was intentionally trying to rock Blake's Griffin. He was trying to punch down the arm bar Blake was hitting him with and just connected in a bad spot.
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I hear that.
There are definitely biases towards Big Market teams, and teams with history.
The Lakers is one of the teams that had the most benefit from this.
Look at the teams in the league right now that are leading in free throw attempts per game.
1) Lakers
2) OKC
3) Denver
4) Charlotte
5) Minnesota
6) Houston
7) Utah
8) Brooklyn
9) Clippers
10) Detroit
Yes, the Lakers get a lot of free throws. But three of the top 10 teams in free throw attempts are in the lottery, with only OKC and the Clippers being real contenders.
Look at the worst free throw teams now ...
30) Orlando
29) Philadelphia
28) New Orleans
27) Atlanta
26) Phoenix
25) Washington
24) Memphis
23) Portland
22) Boston
21) New York
20) San Antonio
The team with the league's best record is one of the worst teams at getting to the line. Two of the East's top teams in Atlanta and New York are also low on the list, and Memphis is another strong play-off threat there.
There is no clear relationship between getting to the line and winning games. This trend extends across the past several seasons. Yes, there are teams that get to the line a lot and win, and there are those that don't. But just because a team gets a lot of foul calls does not automatically let them win games, which makes any perceived conspiracy on your part miraculously ineffective.
Now, look over the last several seasons. I am going back to 2003-2004, because that is as far back as I can get the numbers through a casual search, and I don't feel like doing anything more involved.
Since the 2003-2004 season, the Lakers have attempted approximately 20,226 free throws (I say approximately because I back-tracked their per game averages for the number of games they played, and rounded, so I might be off by a few).
That is 4th in the league during that span. Behind Denver, Utah, and Orlando. Rounding out the top 10 since 2003-4:
Clippers
Sonics/OKC
Sacramento
Miami
Cleveland
Indiana
It is worth noting that the Clippers, OKC, and Indiana, although strong teams now, were not perennially strong in the past decade.
The worst free throw teams since 2003? Well, San Antonio is 27th, and how have they been doing? Phoenix is 26th, and though they suck now, for good chunk of this past decade they were a serious contender (at times favorite).
The Bobcats have taken more free throws in the past decade than the Mavericks, who were a title favorite in Dirk's prime, and won a title recently (and Dirk is arguably the greatest free throw shooter in league history).
By the way, the league average for free throws in the past decade is 19,206, and the worst mark (belonging to New Orleans) is 17,338.
So the total spread between best and worst over the past decade is 5083 free throws, which works out to be 6 free throw attempts per game. The difference between the Lakers over this span and the league average works out to be 1.05 free throw attempt per game.
So, over the past decade, the Lakers have only managed to get about one extra free throw attempt for every game over the league average for this span.
Quite a conspiracy you got going on. ::)
The numbers don't lie, baby, so get off the smug high horse and stop calling us all blind for not believing in easily falsifiable accusations of rigging.
There is obviously some bias in games, but in the big picture, it's nearly negligible.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHIfoV10KlY
This guys hits the nail on the head.
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PS The Lakers game tonight is proof of the rigging happening in the NBA.
If ya'll don't see it, You're blind.
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That Laker game last night. Pure SterNBA.