Referee David Jones called a technical foul on Deron Williams in the Mavericks’ loss to the Pistons last night.
Dallas coach Rick Carlisle says this was no run-of-the-mill tech.
Carlisle, via Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News:“For the first time in a 33-year NBA career, I saw a referee make a point of going out of his way and walking into our huddle and baiting one of our guys into getting a technical,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like that in my years. I don’t see how that can ever be excusable. So there are a lot of things happening right now and we’ve got to rise above them.”
Asked how Jones had baited Williams, he said: “I’m not getting into that, but he clearly did. He went out of his way, could have walked away from it, made a point of going back and I said, ‘I got it, I got it, let it go.’ He goes, ‘no, I got it.’ And he walked essentially into our huddle and baited Deron Williams into getting a technical. And I don’t think that’s right.
“An official’s job is to defuse the situation, not to blow it up. And the referee we’re talking about is an experienced guy. But I’ve never seen anything like this.”
It’s impossible to judge this incident without knowing what was said.
Yes, video shows Jones following Williams into the huddle. But players sometimes want explanations from referees, and Jones could’ve simply been giving one.
Williams then says something to Jones, who calls the technical foul. Again, it’s impossible to judge without knowing what Williams said.
Carlisle’s larger point about defusing the situation is correct. Sometimes, players and coaches -- in the heat of trying to win -- say inappropriate things to referees. Referees are not in the midst of competition. There’s far less excuse for them to lose their cool.
I don’t know how that applies to this situation other than Carlisle’s comments, which seem pretty strong if he didn’t truly believe Jones broke protocol.