NBA suspends referee Crawford indefinitely

• Redsauce

  +5

  I am so glad to see this.  Personally, one of my big pet peeves with referees of all sports is that there are no repercussions for poor umpires.  Or at least none that are made public.  If a player messes up, the consequences are very public.  I don't see why it shouldn't be the same for referees/umpires as well. 

  Posted 4/17/2007 [reply] [flag]

• Fat Phil

  +1

  i was watching this game, and thought that both technicals were outrageous calls. 

  Posted 4/17/2007 [reply] [flag]

• Jason

  +3

  It's interesting to compare the way the league handled this suspension with the Jake O'Donnell suspension/forced retirement in 1995.  They were largely able to sweep that one under the carpet.  Nowadays, they have to be more open.

  Posted 4/17/2007 [reply] [flag]

• Redsauce

  +2

  Do you think it's because the culture is so much more open (or sports media is so much more intrusive) or that it is a conscious decision on the part of the NBA to police their own referees?

  I guess my question is why do you think they have to be more open?  I'm sure referees have been fined, etc. behind the scenes in the past couple of years.   

  Posted 4/18/2007 [reply] [flag]

  • Jason

    +3

    I'd chalk it up to increased attention from the mainstream media as well as the rise of YouTube and sports blogging.  12 years ago, the league was in a much better position to shape the messages that got out.

    Posted 4/18/2007 [reply] [flag]

• cavalier92

  0

  Joe Crawford is the BEST official in the NBA.  Yhea, there are nights when he thinks people are paying to see him officiate and not the players, but he's still the best.

  He did the right thing in tossing Duncan.  He handled it badly, but did the right thing.  He should be reinstated for the playoffs.

  Posted 4/19/2007 [reply] [flag]

  • dalejo

    +1

    Still think so?

    Posted 7/24/2007 [reply] [flag]

    • cavalier92

      0

      Sure do!  Tim Donaghy has nothing to do with the Joe Crawford incident.

      Posted 8/4/2007 [reply] [flag]

• Redsauce

  +1

  Laughing is worth a technical now?  That's ridiculous. 

  And he may have been a good, even great referee.  But everyone makes mistakes, and he made a big one.  I'm just glad that the NBA decided to publicly reprimand him.  Referees should be subject to more penalties for poor performance, much like players are.

  Posted 4/19/2007 [reply] [flag]

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Links (16)

Referee Joey Crawford suspended indefinitely
Published 4/17/2007 by Matt Watson at Detroit Bad Boys
... The NBA suspended referee Joey Crawford indefinitely after

STERN TO CRAWFORD: SIT YO ASS DOWN
Published 4/17/2007 by HG at YOU BEEN BLINDED
... NBA suspends Joey Crawford. Swacked from ESPN.com

WOW - Joey Crawford Suspended
Published 4/17/2007 by Wes Cox <info@mavsmoneyball.com> at Mavs Moneyball: Front Page Posts
... link

Rough Week For The Pride of Havertown
Published 4/17/2007 by Enrico at The700Level.com - Philly Sports & Minutiae
... It has been a rocky couple of day's for Havertown native Joey Crawford.  He's been suspended for the remainder of the year for the bizarre incident with Tim Duncan. [ESPN]

Referee Joey Crawford Suspended Indefinitely
Published 4/17/2007 by Scott at NBA Weblog
... The good news is that David Stern is also a clever and intelligent businessman and realizes such behavior by referees detracts from the quality and marketability of the game. In response, he has suspended Joey Crawford for the remainder of the season and playoffs and will speak to him in the offseason about the game and his likelihood for returning. Crawford was one of 10 NBA refs who were charged with filing false income tax returns in 1998. He resigned from the NBA, but was reinstated by Stern in 1999.

Joey Crawford Will Have To Fight Tim Duncan From His Living Room
Published 4/17/2007 by Fornelli at Foul Balls
... ? David Stern didn't much appreciate it. The NBA suspended referee Joey Crawford indefinitely on Tuesday after he ejected Tim Duncan on Sunday in the Spurs' game against the Mavericks. Crawford's suspension will at least cover the rest of the regular season and the playoffs. "Joey Crawford's handling of this situation failed to meet the standards of professionalism and game management we expect of NBA referees," NBA commissioner David Stern said. "Especially in light of similar prior acts by this official, a significant suspension is warranted. Although Joey is consistently rated as one of our top referees, he must be held accountable for his actions on the floor, and we will have further discussions with him following the season to be sure he understands his responsibilities." Upon hearing the news, Crawford challenged David Stern to a pie-eating contest. He was then informed he was talking to a refrigerator.

Now Crawford's The One Sent Packing
Published 4/17/2007 by The Feed at The Feed
... David Stern cut no corners in his statement about Crawford's suspension.

Before challenging Tim Duncan to throw down
Published 4/17/2007 by kambrothers at Lakers Blog
... Double check and make sure you don't actually work for the NBA . Otherwise, you might find yourself watching the playoffs in a sports bar, as is the case with suspended ref Joey Crawford, who offered to step outside with the Big Fundamental. Apparently, you're not allowed to do that. Who knew? Must be one of those obscure rules way in back of the book.

Joe Crawford is why I go to basketball games.
Published 4/18/2007 at Sports Bastards
... Now, I'm in no position to really criticize Crawford, but the NBA is. Penishead has a history of overshadowing the games he officiates (and not in a good way like

I have seen the others and I have discovered that the fight is not worth fighting
Published 4/18/2007 by Ben at YAYsports! NBA
... As you probably know by now, veteran referee Joey Crawford was suspended for the rest of the regular season and the entire 7 month playoff run.

I Wear My Sunglasses at Night: Blue Jays 2, Red Sox 1
Published 4/18/2007 by Zach at The House That Dewey Built
... must have spent a little time in a local watering hole before strapping on the chest protector yesterday. He was the pinnacle of inconsistency, moving the strike zone up and down, left and right all night. I agreed with him on the call that started the avalanche during the 4th inning Wells at bat, but in the fifth he was giving both corners with renewed generosity. He does, however, get style points for his third strike call against Overbay, it was of the “I’m grabbing you by the neck of the jersey and throwing you back to the dugout” variety. Next I thought he was going to challenge Tim Duncan to a fight.

Joey Crawford Back in the League
Published 9/20/2007 by Scott Mitchell at NBA Weblog
... , Crawford was suspended back in April of this year for slapping a benched Tim Duncan with two quick technicals, and then jawing with him as he was leaving the floor, purportedly asking the big man, "Do you want to fight?" As a response, David Stern was quick to suspend Crawford from the league (Duncan was also fined $25,000 by the L for the incident). ...

WHY JOEY?
Published 5/14/2008 by Mac G (noreply@blogger.com) at Epic Carnival - Pop Culture, Sports, Celebrities, Babes, Rumors, Innuendo
... Yes, the same Joey Crawford, who was suspended from the end of last year's regular season and playoffs for his high profile incident with Tim Duncan. ...

According to “The Code,” No-Call Was the Right Call
Published 5/28/2008 by Ted M. Green at SportsHubLA
... …Lakers up two, Derek Fisher fouling Brent Barry but Joey Crawford manning up with the non-call. Now I’ll tell you why an old-school ref like Joey Crawford did NOT blow the whistle, giving Barry the chance to send the game into overtime.  And it doesn’t have a damn thing to do with Crawford’s previous public dust-up with Tim Duncan, the one that got the ref suspended at the end of the ‘06-’07 season. Crawford didn’t blow his whistle because of The Code. Let me tell you about The Code. Today, most NBA refs are automatons, with the personality of androids.  But years ago, back ...

The Call That Wasn't
Published 5/29/2008 by Dingo (noreply@blogger.com) at San Antonio Spurs Dynasty
... . Joey Crawford is the embodiment of fans antipathy towards the Spurs, a veteran referee who was suspended for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs last year after making a bogus call against the ...

Don't Call Him "The General"
Published 7/8/2008 at ESPN.com - True Hoop - Blog
... One concern I had was that when referee Joey Crawford was suspended indefinitely more than a year ago (he has since been reinstated) for blowing up at Tim Duncan, Commissioner Stern said part of the reason for the harsh punishment was that Crawford had had similar incidents in the past. ...