<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">MIAMI ? There always has been a perception that star players in the NBA get all the calls. Heat guard Steve Smith used to think that center Shaquille O'Neal always got the benefit of the doubt on fouls. "When I was with Portland and he was with the Lakers ..." Smith said, shaking his head. But now that O'Neal, who was third in the league in free-throw attempts this season, is on Smith's team, he has a different point of view. "I'm not going to go as far as saying a star player" gets favorable treatment, Smith said. "I'm just going to say a veteran who knows the tricks of the trade knows how to draw a foul." Foul calls from referees are a red-hot topic in the NBA playoffs because of the troubles of Houston coach Jeff Van Gundy. Van Gundy said that after the Rockets took a 2-0 lead in their series against Dallas, a referee not working the playoffs told him that the league asked officials to pay special attention to Houston center Yao Ming. As the story goes, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban had complained that Yao was setting moving screens. Van Gundy was fined $100,000 for his allegations and remains in trouble with the league. Still, coaches undoubtedly will continue to speak up in an effort to protect their players. Last week, New Jersey coach Lawrence Frank complained that O'Neal was beating up Nets players when they drove the lane ? and that officials weren't whistling him for it. Heat coach Stan Van Gundy, Jeff's older brother, responded by calling the allegations ridiculous. "My only concern is ? and I think it was Jeff's concern, too ? is you feel the need to respond when the opposing coaches start publicly making complaints," Stan Van Gundy said. "You don't want referees or anybody looking for something based on what the other team is saying." In the second round of the playoffs last year, Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said that the Heat was catching a break from officials. "You're always a little paranoid as coach that when the other guys start publicly crying in the papers, that may bring him an advantage," Van Gundy said. "That's probably not even the case, ... but I think we all do that." Some players say a good rapport with referees changes lots of things, and they add that being a star doesn't hurt.</div> Source
My biggest beef with any officiating in any sport is inconsistent calls. Players can adjust to how a game is played as long as the calls are consistent. In a perfect world, refs would have no preferential treatment (be it star v. non-star, veteran v. rookie, etc.), but refs are human and are subject to the same foibles as everyone. So, I think for the players sake, they should at least be consistent. For example, when it comes to fouls, some refs will call a foul in the first quarter, then swallow their whistle in the fourth. That's not consistent. If a ref calls ticky tacky fouls (which I don't prefer, but if he does), then as a player I will adjust my defense so as not to draw those fouls all game. If there is evidence that a directive specifically about one player occured, then the NBA should investigate and all parties involved should cooperate.
