First off, let’s give credit where credit is due. The NBA has made tremendous strides in recent years on the officiating front, particularly in terms of the review process. A state-of-the-art Replay Center in Secaucus, NJ is a testament to their renewed commitment to making the correct calls whenever possible. They go to it early and often these days and have virtually no qualms about reversing calls they may have initially botched on the floor in the heat of the moment.
That said, there are still some central truths about the officiating process in the NBA. One is that the referees are loathe to bail a player out by calling a foul on his defender in the deciding moments of the game. It happens sometimes, but rarely. It’s a fact that Reggie Jackson should have recognized on Sunday night with the clocki winding down in Game 4 against the Cavs.
After getting a huge stop on the other end, Jackson dribbled the ball up court with no timeouts left and his team trailing, 100-98. He had Kyrie Irving aggressively draped all over him the whole way and proceeded to miss a potentially game-winning and series-saving shot at the buzzer. Jackson felt like there was a good deal of contact on that final play, and he let the world know about it in his post-game press conference.
Not only did he believe it was an egregious no-call, he took it a few steps further, via MLive.com:
“Fines, suspensions, being fired,” Jackson said. “The same thing that happens to us. Make bad plays or questionable (calls), you’re not really being productive to the sport. They should have consequences, just like the players. That’s about (all) I’m going to say on that.”
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You’ll recall that this isn’t the first time this series that the Pistons have levied complaints against the officials. It started in Game 1, with Jackson growing increasingly irate about his unsuccessful attempts to draw offensive fouls on LeBron James as the latter deployed his usual tactic of relentlessly bullying his opponents in the lane. Stan Van Gundy also sounded off about it in a sideline interview and earned himself a hefty fine.
But what was lost in Van Gundy’s comments was a crucial message to his players: get over it and play through it. For the fledgling Pistons, it’s all part of the learning process, and there are plenty of positive takeaways from this series. They fought hard, made each game competitive, and have a lot to build on moving forward.
Whether Jackson was fouled on that final play is beside the point. It’s also unlikely that his searing criticism of the officials will result in some sort of comprehensive overhaul to the process or usher in some version of the disciplinary measures he’s suggesting, although it’s certainly possible down the road. It’s much more likely that he’ll simply earn a fine for it.
Nonetheless, he and the rest of the Pistons should use it as motivation to make a return trip to the playoffs next year and embark on an extended postseason run.
