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Some Orlando Magic fans are sure refs; will rig series for Cavaliers
Topic Started: May 20 2009, 12:58 PM (1,058 Views)
blksage2000
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Conspiracy theorists unite: you have a new crowd in your midst. All you UFO believers, JFK hypothesizers and moon-landing deniers, welcome in a group of Orlando Magic fans who seem to think the Cavaliers are on their way to the NBA Finals.

The Eastern Conference finals start tonight, but there is already chatter among fans in bars, message groups and Web sites with the same belief: The NBA would much rather see LeBron James play Kobe Bryant and the Lakers in the NBA Finals.

People in the Sentinel's live chat during Game 7 with the Celtics talked about it. Someone on the popular Magic blog "Third Quarter Collapse" posted this: "I hope the Magic can beat the refs" when talking about the Cavs series. He even included a poll, "Who do you think will win with the refs?" Of the 38 people who responded, 22 said neither (and 11 said the NBA is rigged).

Whether this represents a small segment of the Magic fan base or not, the chatter is real.

"This next series with the Cavs, I will be looking at the fouls being called," said Derek Patti, 23, a Magic fan in Apopka. "As much as I don't want to think the refs will favor the Cavs the whole series, I truly would not be surprised one bit. I love the NBA, but when calls are made by refs that you just know are bogus, it is very frustrating to watch. Especially when it is your team that is getting the shaft."

Indeed, the NBA has had to battle the perception that the league is fixed for some time, but it came to a head when disgraced ex-referee Tim Donaghy admitted last year that he gambled on games. He also said two of the three refs who worked Game 6 of the playoff series between the Kings and Lakers in 2002 impacted the outcome, a charge the league vehemently denies, but one the fans point to as a reason they believe the refs can't be trusted.

Then there was Game 3 of the Dallas-Denver series this year when the refs failed to call an intentional foul on the Mavericks before Carmelo Anthony hit the game-winning 3-pointer. The NBA admitted the officials made a mistake.

"Perception is reality," said Eddy Rivera, a contributing editor at "Third Quarter Collapse." "There's been a lot of problems with the NBA with officiating this year and in the past. The NBA has done a poor job of cleaning up that perception. Fans of any team are running with that. With the Magic right now, the Kobe-LeBron finals that everyone seems to want — I don't believe there's a conspiracy but I can sympathize with fans because of what's occurred in the NBA over the last several years."

One Magic fan, David Stella of Orlando, said he truly believes the games are rigged: "I honestly believe this, going back to the Lakers and Kings series. It's not just from a Magic fan perspective, I'm looking at it from the big picture, it seems that way and I strongly believe a lot of the games are fixed."

NBA spokesman Tim Frank called any accusations about game fixing "reckless and irresponsible. It's such a disservice to the game, it's an insult to the coaches, players and fans to say the games are not decided on their merits."

Perhaps fans from smaller markets feel their teams feel somewhat paranoid because they are not in bigger markets. Former Dallas coach Avery Johnson remembers when he played for San Antonio, fans believed the NBA didn't want the Spurs to win because ratings would be bad.

"But the fact is the NBA wants the best team to win. Small market or big market, there are no conspiracy theories there," said Johnson, who works as an analyst at ESPN. "There shouldn't be any preconceived notions. Nobody's going to get cheated. The referees are going to call the games fairly. There isn't going to be any bias."

TNT studio host Ernie Johnson offers this voice of reason: "The league is not trying to manufacture a final. If they were, then Boston would be playing Cleveland."





its going to be a long fustrating series guys :no:
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mgsports
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Haven't even started yet and sureing.
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efenell
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DA - Magic Legend
It was clearly evedent last night that we much beat the Cleveland Lebrons, and the refs. It was obvious to see
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blksage2000
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after reading this and watchin the game ..... i dunno wut to say.... but rigged or not those calls were blantly one sided last nite....
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SG489
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The Comeback Kid
I don't know what to say about this, but if this the case and the series is completely crooked and rigged, I would not be surprised that the NBA would go downhill when it comes to dishonesty and disintegrity. Don't they want another "Tim Donaghy" controversy?!
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TheFalcon
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Air Gortat
Also, the moon landing was shot in a LA studio and JFK was shot by Elvis (with Bob Dylan's gun, of course) from behind a fence on the grassy knoll.

The refs had multiple opportunities to call a foul on the Cav's final posession and didn't do it. If the game was rigged, they did a pretty shoddy job last night.

Look, we're fans of one particular team - of course we're going to think the refs are biased. And when we think they are "fair," guess what fans of the other team think? The fact is, we never come on here and complain about bad calls that help the Magic, which happen every single game.

Perhaps there is some deep rooted psychological desire for a Cavs-Lakers final in the minds of the refs and occasionally a call goes the way it shouldn't - but to me, that's hardly different than superstar calls (which both Howard and LeBron get) or home court calls (which have always been a part of basketball).

If you truly believe that the league is rigged, you probably should stop watching. If not, then let it be and stop complaining. We beat the Celtics (how'd that happen?!) and we're up 1-0 on the Cavs. Apparently the NBA master plan is flawed.
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Vinnie
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Legend
I do believe in Game 2 we will be fighting the refs big time. I expect Lebron to shoot 20 free throws and Dwight to be in foul trouble very early. The NBA will do whatever it takes to make sure the Cavs don't go down 0-2. Can we overcome this? Of course, but it will be a tall task. I'm a big believer that the one sport where the refs do manipulate things at times from orders above is the NBA. Call me crazy, but I truly believe this.
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True Magic
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The Franchise
It really boggles my mind that this should even be an issue. I mean what the hell, just let the teams play and whoever is better wins... it's such bulls**t and it pisses me off. But really, of all the sports the refs are the absolute shadiest in the NBA. No questions asked.
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TheFalcon
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Air Gortat
The refs really bungled the grand conspiracy last night. There should have been multiple calls made against the Nuggets in the last 30 seconds, but the Nuggets got the advantage every time!? Boy, they must not have gotten their daily how-to-fix-a-game memo from David Stern.

It's all rigged, I tell you!!!

(P.S. - Atlantis is buried off the coast of South Africa and is filled with gold, but the governments of Portugal and Belize have teamed with David Stern to hide it's exact location, so that the gold can serve as a emergency stockpile in case LeBron James suddenly were to find himself with less endorsement deals)
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Jax Magic
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There are missed calls every single game, guys. The refs don't have the benefit of replay to correct fouls that should have been called or not called. Just play better than the other team.
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Odin
Legend
To those who think the very concept of a shady ref is impossible:
Guys this is the real world, money does affect things, trust me I would love to believe that it just couldnt happen but I've seen enough of the corruption in the real world to know that greed trumps just about every other trait.
I mean I dont believe everyone is in on it, but I do believe its possible the higher ups or even big money gambling can say " hey if its a close call, lets see if we can get the Lebron kobe matchup."
I am a big fan of the Magic and maybe I will see a call that could go either way as leaning more towards my team but there have been calls, that are BLATANTLY obvious, the no call on mo, the charge on C Lee and the block on Gortat, thats 3-4 points posssibly right there.
Dont be naive guys, it could happen.
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MAGICmanSAM
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God is LOVE
Dwight's block on LeBron's 3-point shot near the end of Game 3...NUFF SAID.
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magiclive
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#1 Magic Fan
Despite the refs best efforts, we have a 2-1 lead in the series. LeBron should be very upset with his teammates at this point in the series. He and the refs have brought their A-game for all 3 games, but the role players just won't step up. I don't know how much more LeBron and the refs can do for the Cavs.
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magiclive
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MAGICmanSAM
May. 25, 2009 12:08 AM
Dwight's block on LeBron's 3-point shot near the end of Game 3...NUFF SAID.

Exactly. I won't even mention:

-The goal tend on LeBron that was called a block
-Every time LeBron goes charging into Howard and they call a foul on Dwight
-The clear charge on LeBron when he ran over MP
-The tap on LeBron's head by Hedo that was called a foul
(That's weird. All those plays involve LeBron.)

And that's just from Game 3. I won't mention any of that.
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TheFalcon
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Air Gortat
Superstar calls are nothing new.
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