The Pistons led the championshipseries 3 games to 2, and Isiah Thomas was putting on a show in Game 6. A decade later, questionable officiating still haunts what might be the greatest playoff series ever played, writes Matt Gallagher. We knew we were the better team. Sacramento, which had never won a playoff game before in the Lakers Staples Center, broke that streak in Game 3, winning 103-90. The Lakers eventually prevailed 106-102 to force a decisive Game 7. Bibby drilled the shot and unleashed a roar, a ghost foul on Kings guard Doug Christie, A Bryant elbow on Bibby with 12 seconds left. 40 free throws for the Lakers over the course of the game. We beat the crap out of them in Game 3, and we led in Game 4 for 47 minutes., A luck shot is one of those guys who has no form, Horry said after the game. A missed three at the end of the game by a still bleeding Bibby to give the Lakers the win. Sacramentos season ended just a few points short: Lakers 112-Kings 106. I think referees are instructed on general things. Referee Bob Delaney, Beech found, called the game quite evenly. The Throwback. Well You could convince me of one. Even without Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw Phoenix almost beat the Spurs in Game 5 anyway. With a slim 1.5% of winning the 1993 draft lottery the Magic won it, and selected Chris Webber first overall who they later traded away for Penny Hardaway. The NBA has birthed more conspiracy theories than Roswell. Why? But what happened during those four nights in 2006 left a mark on the NBA's historical resum so big that it can never really be erased. The Lakers had beaten the Kings both of the previous years in the playoffs en route to titles, but Sacramento now had clutch-shooting point guard Mike Bibby on its already deep roster, and held home court advantage over their rivals to the south for the first timethe spoils of an NBA-best 61-21 regular season record. It wasnt like the Kings stopped scoring points they shot 49% from the field for the game but not at the clip the Lakers were. The LA Lakers were in the third seed coming into the playoffs. For now, the NBA hopes fans can focus on Celtics versus Lakers. This looked like a panic whistle. The Hornets had a 13% at getting the top pick, and it wasnt a shock to conspiracy theorists that they landed the pick because it seemed like the league was making up for vetoing the first Chris Paul trade a season earlier. . The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. However, the Kings secured the 3-2 series advantage in a nail-biting game-five win, 92-91. GOLDMAN: The Lakers went on to win the 2002 NBA title. Game 7 was incredibly lucrative, and an NBA Finals between two small-market teams like Sacramento and New Jersey would have been a fiscal disaster. Had an offensive foul been called, the Bulls would have lost Game 6 86-85 and been forced to play Game 7 in Utah. The officials awarded Wade free throws instead of an offensive foul, and the Heat went on to win their fourth straight game to win the title. Though no one thought much of it at the time, the lead official of Game 1, an NBA veteran named Dick Bavetta, reffed an extremely tight game in the post. They won the first two games of this series at home and if Smith would have gone to the foul line here and made both free throws, they would have won Game 5. The league had dealt with something like this before, they had seen the effect it had and they went forward with the suspension. This video shows every bad call of that game. Brown got into a fight. The Heat would win the final four games of the series, but the free throw attempts between the two teams were enormously in favor of the Heat. The 2001 Bucks team was a memorable squad, surrounded . There appears to be contact particularly on the fourth attempt. Pollard was traded after the 2003 season. But was there a motive behind it? As it turns out, though, I wasn't too far off. WebDonaghy made a statement to US District Court in New York that Game 6 was rigged by the referees, and there was already real controversy during and after the game. The theory here is that the NBA thought it would be best for the highly star powered Los Angeles Lakers to be the face of the league still in 1988. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. The Bulls were once again champions, but they could have had to go back to Chicago for a Game 7 instead of a parade if an offensive foul was properly called. He could face up to 25 years in prison and a $500,000 fine, but he is expected to receive a lighter sentence because he cooperated with the authorities.Lauro and federal prosecutors filed letters last month urging the court to consider that cooperation. And the calls came. David Stern the NBA Commissioner was a native New Yorker and he allegedly bent the Knicks envelope so that he would know which envelope to choose, and this assured Ewing would go to the Knicks. Donaghy, a convicted felon for betting on games he officiated and who Stern has insisted was a lone rogue official whose claims about other referees cant be taken seriously, has written at length about the ways he says officials influence games, often to help produce a league-preferred result. L.A.'s Derek Fisher and Boston's Scot Pollard played in the 2002 playoff game between the Lakers and Sacramento Kings, the game Tim Donaghy says was rigged by two referees in favor of the Lakers. There was a scrum for the rebound and Divac batted the ball away from the basket in an attempt to drain whatever time remained. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. No call was more egregious than a foul call made on Mike Bibby. So, thats a fact. Considering how much was on the line in terms of his legacy, I'm guessing that Michael Jordan would have led the Bulls to a win. Fans sometimes cry foul that a league will extend a series so that they can generate more revenue, and this is done by fixing games potentially. Kings fans, who routinely sold out Arco Arena during seasons of atrocious basketball, brought it to another level now, complete with ringing cowbells; the decibel level during the 2002 playoffs was measured as high as 112, about the same level of a jet engine. How often do we see calls made that long after the initial contact? We live in a world where conspiracy theories run rampant. The refs also made some bad calls against the Kings for almost the entirety of the game. The Lakers were back-to-back defending champions at that point. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. Here are 15 times the NBA seemed fixed. The refs know what players are supposed to get calls, and I think they know who is expected to get the benefit of the doubt at the end of games. Late in the series clinching Game 6 Wade drove to the basket elbowing Dirk Nowitzki in the face on his way to the basket. With both I think they win the series. Lauro and Donaghy also cited a well-publicized controversy involving a 2005 playoff series between the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks. All rights reserved. Surely it would be hard for any team to move past these two struggling franchises, but the league saw an opportunity to again cause controversy. The oft-maligned Webber played with both resolve and desperation, apparently intent on shedding his reputation as wilting in the big moment, with 20 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds. Game 3was the ultimate swing game, and after Game 3most people knew the Knicks were probably going to represent the east in the NBA finals. Unique lists featuring pop culture, entertainment and crazy facts. The three that we rank as the most important are Game 7 At halftime, Chris Webber told us to just count on playing against eight out there, Pollard said, referring to the five Lakers on the court and the three referees. - That NBA officials instructed referees not to call technical fouls on "certain star players," because it might hurt television ratings and ticket sales. Ex-NBA Referee Pleads Guilty to Felony Charges, Ex-NBA Ref's Scandal Rankles His Hometown, Commissioner Says NBA Deserves Benefit of Doubt, Stats of NBA Referee Combed for Clues to Gambling. ONeal helped the Magic greatly improve just barely missing out on the playoffs in the 1992-93 NBA season. He added, "He may be willing to say anything to help his cause and he may believe these most recent allegations will help his agenda." The referee crew assigned to Game 6 was Bavetta (whod overseen an ONeal-dominant game in Game 1), Bob Delaney and Ted Bernhardt. He didn't, because, like everyone else, he didn't have the reach. According to Lauro's letter: "Tim learned from Referee A that Referees A and F wanted to extend the series to seven games. But the referees/league didnt allow the better team to win.. 29K views 2 years ago. Or write about sports? This is the first call on this list that feels a little fishy. And he's going to be sentenced for that crime, regardless of these desperate attempts to implicate as many people as he can." Kings 'robbed' in 2002 Western Conference finals, Tim Donaghy In Game 4James baited Draymond Green into a flagrant fouled by pushing him down to the floor and stepping over him. But the mother ship of NBA conspiracy theories remains Game 6 of the classic 2002 Western Conference Finals between the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers and the upstart Sacramento Kings. Fortunately, four teams in the East delivered. With Bibby and Divac leading the way, they shot 71% in the first quarter, and were up 46-22 at one point in the second quarter. "If we get to re-rack that series, the Kings beat the Lakers 99 out of 100 times in a seven-games series, former Sacramento player Scot Pollard said in a phone interview. Lakers vs Pacers Game 6 Many die-hard NBA fans swear by the theory that this series was Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. So, from that standpoint, yes. I said there was no foul play involved in 2008, but in 2010? Stern did not respond to specific allegations but said that the NBA had fully cooperated with the government since last summer. Instead the New Orleans Hornets moved up four spots in the lottery and got the number one pick. The NBA has yet to publicize the results of its review, which was conducted by an outside lawyer, Lawrence Pedowitz. This is probably the only call in NBA history to definitively swing a title, which is why it's so high on this list. 9 9. But what's worst of all? These are some of the worlds best athletes, after all, moving very quickly and sometimes violently. Id never experienced anything quite like it, said writer James Ham, the editor of ESPNs Kings site, Cowbell Kingdom. Even Jeff Van Gundy was stunned. The bottom line is, you know something's up when prominent NBA writers like Bill Simmons tweet that they "don't watch rigged games." The Lakers had Kobe and Shaq. In 2014, the Milwaukee Bucks had the leagues worst record and the Philadelphia 76ers were in the first year of their drastic tanking strategy that was employed by Sam Hinkie. ONeal rebounded the ball on the far side of the basket and went up for a shot, challenged by Divac. It was game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals. Ten years later, Ham sighed and paused for many seconds when trying to explain the effect Horrys shot had on the Kings franchise. The letter describes a 2002 playoff series that went seven games; the Western Conference finals was the only series to require seven games. In Game 5 of the 1997 Eastern Conference semifinals, Charlie Ward and P.J. The controversy here is that many people believe Smith was fouled on at least one and as many as three times in that sequence. Michael Jordan was on a mission to win his sixth ring, but late in Game 6 the Utah Jazz looked poised to push the series to a seventh game. The buzzer sounded and the Lakers won, 100-99. With the Lakers being down at the start of the 4th quarter they got back into the game. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? Do Harsh Punishments Ease Gambling's Stain? If you wanted excitement, you had to look to the Eastern Conference and the race for at least a berth in the NBA Finals. Mutumbo sent out a tweet congratulating the Philadelphia 76ers on getting the first pick in the draft hours before the lottery was going to be televised. 2002 Western Conference Finals Game 6: The Elbow, 8. Despite the questionable calls, the Kings were shooting well and entered the quarter tied at 75. Jordan dribbled to his right then crossed over to his left, and also gave defender Byron Russell a slight shove to get an open look. Many speculated that the game was rigged. These conspiracies are a little more widespread than the one of the NBA being fixed and rigged, but there are plenty of events in NBA history that present a compelling case for the argument of the league being fixed. He did n't have the reach this before, they had seen the it. Because, like everyone else, he did n't have the reach for the Lakers eventually prevailed to... 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