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ESPN: NBA ref Tim Donaghy conspired to fix dozens of NBA games from '03-'07

Sho_Nuff82

Sho_Nuff82

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Nov 14, 2017
18,410
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...donaghy-conspired-fix-nba-games?sf207993034=1

This was previously posted in the NBA community thread but I didn't see a thread for it in the main forum. Probably the best bit of long-form writing and investigative journalism I've seen from ESPN in ages, and should definitely be the subject of a 30 for 30 or multi-part documentary in the future.

TLDR - Disgraced former ref Donaghy not only bet on games he refereed from '03-'07 (which he at the time admitted to, and was fired/jailed for), he also fixed them, helping his mob-connected buddies win 100s of millions of dollars. After getting confronted by the FBI, the NBA blew the whistle on Donaghy (to the NY Post) before he could be used as an informant on other possibly corrupt refs, painted him as a lone wolf, and David Stern flat out stated that NBA games couldn't be fixed. The methods he used to affect spreads (he claimed he could change +/- 6 points either way) will have me giving side eye in the future.
 
Deception

Deception

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Nov 15, 2017
8,422
This is huge news for all organized sports and it would naive of anyone to think that this hasn't happened in some capacity in every major professional and collegiate league. The integrity of the 2003 NBA playoffs will always be called into question because of this man.
 

Deleted member 33887

User requested account closure
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Nov 20, 2017
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I'm pretty convinced rigging games is a massive problem in both the NBA and the NFL. I say this as someone who doesn't root for anyone in particular in either sport (or even follow the league in the case of the NFL).

Baseball would be a lot harder to rig by umpires, except maybe via strikezones. Even then, that's not exactly the same and it starts to get obvious at some point.
 

see5harp

Banned
Oct 31, 2017
4,435
Man the foul calls in that Sacramento game still make me mad. Fuck this dude forever.
 
LGHT_TRSN

LGHT_TRSN

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Oct 25, 2017
7,125
The NBA is so ripe for fixing given the subjective nature of refereeing the game.

Scott Foster still ref's regular and post-season NBA games and received 134 calls from Donaghy during the time he was fixing games. Fucking ridiculous.
 
Deception

Deception

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Nov 15, 2017
8,422
If i'm the Saints then i'm ordering an investigation into every ref who called the NFC championship game.
 
metalslimer

metalslimer

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
9,558
People always like to say that they shouldnt be in a position where the refs can decide a game but fuck that refs have so much power and these athletes are so good that having even a slight advantage can change the course of a game. This especially true in bb where fouls change so much

People also like to think that if a ref was corrupt he obviously wouldnt make bad calls against the team he wants to win which certainly isnt true as shown here
 
divisionbyzorro

divisionbyzorro

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Oct 25, 2017
3,771
I have a hard time believing (a) Donaghy was a lone wolf and (b) this isn't still happening today. I genuinely have a hard time caring about the NBA because I can't get it out of my head that the refs have too much power over the outcome of the game with very little accountability.
 
Muppet of a Man

Muppet of a Man

Member
Oct 27, 2017
7,670
Never forget:

wvBt4rb.gif


Foul committed by Mike Bibby's face on Kobe Bryant's elbow.

FUCK THIS SHIT.
 

see5harp

Banned
Oct 31, 2017
4,435
It's still not as fixable as something like Tennis where the prop bets and stuff get way crazier.

EDIT: by the players themselves, if that wasn't obvious
 
Plinko

Plinko

Member
Oct 28, 2017
18,562
Wasn't this story broke like two years ago?

Anybody who watched that Kings/Lakers series knew it, anyway.
 
SliceSabre

SliceSabre

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Oct 25, 2017
4,556
People that say refs would never rig a game are the most naive or willingly ignorant people out there.
 

Deleted member 2802

Community Resetter
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
33,729
Deception said:
This is huge news for all organized sports and it would naive of anyone to think that this hasn't happened in some capacity in every major professional and collegiate league. The integrity of the 2003 NBA playoffs will always be called into question because of this man.
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In the EU gambling houses are major soccer sponsors
Sports aren't sports anymore.
They are "entertainment"
 
Oozer

Oozer

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Oct 25, 2017
3,821
It's important to note that Tim Donaghy did NOT work the infamous 2002 Western Conference Finals between the Lakers and Kings.
 
Moppy

Moppy

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Oct 27, 2017
2,666
Don't mind me, just gonna be over here weeping madly into my Peja jersey for a bit.
 
Striker

Striker

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Oct 25, 2017
6,369
Deception said:
*Looks at spread* Saints were 3.5 point favorite. *looks at the score before missed call* Saints up by 7 if they score a TD... hmmm conspiracy theories continue.
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So the refs who bet for the Saints and the spread allowed the Rams to not only score on the ensuing drive, but also threw a dumbass interception and allowed the Rams to score again in OT.

No. The Saints lost because of dumb playcalling and a terrible throw in OT. The non call was a horrible one, but the Rams had calls against them all game that weren't called, either. It's kid shit to still be crying over it.
 
VeePs

VeePs

Prophet of Truth
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Oct 25, 2017
17,357
From another article awhile back:

In the letter submitted by Donaghy's attorney, the following "manipulation" is alleged:

"Referees A, F and G were officiating a playoff series between Teams 5 and 6 in May of 2002. It was the sixth game of a seven-game series, and a Team 5 victory that night would have ended the series. However, Tim learned from Referee A that Referees A and F wanted to extend the series to seven games. Tim knew referees A and F to be 'company men,' always acting in the interest of the NBA, and that night, it was in the NBA's interest to add another game to the series. Referees A and F heavily favored Team 6. Personal fouls [resulting in obviously injured players] were ignored even when they occurred in full view of the referees. Conversely, the referees called made-up fouls on Team 5 in order to give additional free throw opportunities for Team 6. Their foul-calling also led to the ejection of two Team 5 players. The referees' favoring of Team 6 led to that team's victory that night, and Team 6 came back from behind to win that series."
 

mrmoose

Member
Nov 13, 2017
21,162
Oozer said:
It's important to note that Tim Donaghy did NOT work the infamous 2002 Western Conference Finals between the Lakers and Kings.
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That is important, but how hard would it have been for other refs to get in on the action? That's what's so damaging about this, is that he did it, got away with it, and the NBA and the government investigated and found nothing. I mean he admitted he bet on games and Stern came out with a straight face and swore that he didn't fix them.
 
Sephzilla

Sephzilla

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Oct 25, 2017
17,493
I've joked for a long time that WWE is more real than the NBA.

But for real, I'm not even a Kings fan and I feel bad for them. They got fucking screwed.
 
Deception

Deception

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Nov 15, 2017
8,422
Striker86 said:
So the refs who bet for the Saints and the spread allowed the Rams to not only score on the ensuing drive, but also threw a dumbass interception and allowed the Rams to score again in OT.

No. The Saints lost because of dumb playcalling and a terrible throw in OT. The non call was a horrible one, but the Rams had calls against them all game that weren't called, either. It's kid shit to still be crying over it.
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A good gambler never bets on the favorite but against the spread. So they were creating an opportunity for the Rams to beat the spread.
I'm not crying over it since Im not a fan of either but it'd be naive to think that this type of corruption didn't extend to other leagues, especially one as popular as the NFL.
 
Thurston Last

Thurston Last

Banned
Jul 26, 2018
1,350
Crazy to think about how much money was being made and the pathetic amount he was actually getting for doing the dirty work.

edit: also, very damning against the NBA that they leaked the details of the investigation to the press that prevented any other ref's from being caught.
 
effzee

effzee

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Oct 26, 2017
9,168
NJ
zer0das said:
I'm pretty convinced rigging games is a massive problem in both the NBA and the NFL. I say this as someone who doesn't root for anyone in particular in either sport (or even follow the league in the case of the NFL).

Well if you did follow the NFL you would realize its almost impossible to rig NFL games.

Baseball would be a lot harder to rig by umpires, except maybe via strikezones. Even then, that's not exactly the same and it starts to get obvious at some point.
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Soda said:
Baseball stays winning?

But for real, yikes. And, great detective work by ESPN.
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Baseball has had its own issues with gambling and throwing games.

Deception said:
If i'm the Saints then i'm ordering an investigation into every ref who called the NFC championship game.
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Make sure to investigate Sean Payton first.

Muppet of a Man said:
Never forget:

wvBt4rb.gif


Foul committed by Mike Bibby's face on Kobe Bryant's elbow.

FUCK THIS SHIT.
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That is why Bibby started working out.
 
Striker

Striker

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,369
Deception said:
A good gambler never bets on the favorite but against the spread. So they were creating an opportunity for the Rams to beat the spread.
I'm not crying over it since Im not a fan of either but it'd be naive to think that this type of corruption didn't extend to other leagues, especially one as popular as the NFL.
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I'm not arguing whether or not the NFL referees are terrible. Jerome Boger is probably the worst case. But the Saints loss was primarily their own fuckup and the non-call was just another pile to the list during the game.
 
Deception

Deception

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Nov 15, 2017
8,422
Striker86 said:
I'm not arguing whether or not the NFL referees are terrible. Jerome Boger is probably the worst case. But the Saints loss was primarily their own fuckup and the non-call was just another pile to the list during the game.
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I just used the Saints call as one blatant example but with the number of phantom PI calls, roughing the passer, etc that happens in every game warrants suspicion. If the NFL really cared about transparency, they would allow calls to be challengable like the CFL but maybe the rules committee is in on it too.
 
dots

dots

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Oct 27, 2017
3,889
How does the league still employ Scott Foster, he got calls every day from the phone this guy used to make his gambling calls.
 
Hokahey

Hokahey

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Oct 28, 2017
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Striker86 said:
I'm not arguing whether or not the NFL referees are terrible. Jerome Boger is probably the worst case. But the Saints loss was primarily their own fuckup and the non-call was just another pile to the list during the game.
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Jeff Triplett was so bad (intentionally?) during the Chiefs vs Titans 2017 divisional round playoff game that he retired immediately after.
 
OP
OP
Sho_Nuff82

Sho_Nuff82

Member
Nov 14, 2017
18,410
Really, the idea that point spreads can't be worked is silly when Donoghy lays it out.

- Call illegal defense or touch foul early to make a team in question play more slack on D
- Get the big man or best player in foul trouble to force statistically predictable scoring swings (as these players would have best real +/- ratings)
- Go heavy on touch fouls in the 4th quarter to force free throws to close or beat a spread

The only games he couldn't make micro-adjustments like this were blowouts. In the modern 3 point-heavy league, it would arguably be harder, but still possible.

dots said:
How does the league still employ Scott Foster, he got calls every day from the phone this guy used to make his gambling calls.
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Is there a link to this?
 
captmcblack

captmcblack

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Oct 25, 2017
5,059
FUCKING KNEW IT.
Even back then, I was sure. That shit definitely was rigged even back in the 80s and 90s too.
 
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