Kevin Durant generated a lot of conversation by backing the NBA referees. The NBA’s two-minute report on the Warriors loss to the Cavaliers on Christmas Day said the referees missed Richard Jefferson tripping Durant, it should have been a foul. A lot of players would have said “I told you so,” but Durant defended the NBA’s officials and ripped the league’s two-minute reports.
Durant has a lot of people in his corner — Steve Kerr, Gregg Popovich, and Stan Van Gundy are among the coaches who have questioned the reports; Dwyane Wade said he “hates” them, LeBron James is with him, and plenty of other players have called the reports a mistake.
But the reports aren’t going anywhere — and I don’t think they should. Adam Silver started them as a counter to the David Stern-era policy that the league almost never admitted referee errors. Silver wants transparency, even if that shows off a little of the dirt of the league (although I’d say the reports primarily show the league’s refs get things right, that’s just not what anyone focuses on). Personally, if the choices are no information, or information that shows the referees are human, I want that info.
That’s what I cover in this latest PBT Extra.
