The 12 referees who work the NBA Finals will wear No. 57 on their jerseys as a show of recognition to colleague Greg Willard, who has pancreatic cancer. A 24-year veteran, Willard is one of the NBA’s top officials, having worked the last two NBA Finals, the pinnacle of officiating. He was still working in the early rounds of this postseason before pulling out with an undisclosed illness. The gesture was arranged by the National Basketball Referees Association with the NBA’s cooperation. “Greg’s
Time for a look around at what’s happening today in the NBA. We’ll be doing this every day from now on, right around 7-8 p.m. EDT. Doc Rivers was irate for receiving a technical foul in Game 1 against the Miami Heat for simply saying “Come on Eddie” to referee Ed Malloy, and rightfully so. From Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston: “I know mine wasn’t (deserved). I can tell you that much,” said Rivers, whose team got hit with three individual technicals, a
Quick quiz: Who are the only two referees to work the last five NBA Finals? Dick Bavetta? Sorry, he hasn’t worked a Finals since 2008. Eddie F. Rush? Nope. Since 2007, he’s only gotten the call once. Mike Callahan? You’re getting warmer. He’s worked the last three, as have both Derrick Stafford and Monty McCutchen. Scott Foster? Joey Crawford? Warmer still. Both have worked the last four. If you answered Dan Crawford and Ken Mauer, take a bow. That duo has the longest current