In the entire history of organized labor has there ever been an organization with less bargaining power than the NBA referee union? Last night as I watched the Jazz and Bulls playing a preseason game in London, I was struck by the fluidity of a game that wasn’t bogged down by constant whistles. The new refs were letting touch fouls, and a lot of body-to-body contact go, essentially forcing players to earn their buckets, instead of promoting flopping, acting and complaining like their whistle happy predecessors. The level of competence displayed by most NBA refs in the past few years has hovered somewhere between what you should expect in a JV girls game and the over 40 league at your local YMCA. Minimum wage would be too much to pay these guys.
On-court deficiencies aside, the old guard of NBA refs have also been marred by the Tim Donaghy scandal, Joey Crawford’s Tim Duncan outburst, and Dick Bavetta’s kissing bandit routine. Listen Dick, just because we let Isiah and Magic get away with this routine for so long, doesn’t mean I want to spend an entire All-Star weekend watching you awkwardly try to wrap your crusty old man lips around everyone within arm’s reach. Plus how does a "professional" referee lose a foot race to Chuck? But seriously the NBA’s on-court product has often compromised by their official’s incompetence. This strike is a chance to wipe the slate/roster clean and start fresh.
-Jesse
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