Tim Donaghy isn’t done yet, Stern says, “Whatever.”

06.10.2008 | 10:03 pm | Hater Tuesdays, Warrior-Less Playoffs, Zee Blog Juice

I’ve been talking smack about how the finals matchup between the Lakers and Celtics was preordained. But my sources are pretty much, well, me. Now disgraced NBA referee Tim Donaghy has to go and pour kerosene on my little lantern in the form of the following quotables from the Washington Post.

Donaghy told the FBI that referees, whom he referred to as “company men,” helped alter the controversial 2002 playoff series between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings. Donaghy will be sentenced next month. He claimed that officials desired to extend the Lakers-Kings series to seven games by calling more fouls against the Kings in Game 6. In that game, two Sacramento players — Vlade Divac and Scot Pollard — fouled out defending Shaquille O’Neal. The Lakers shot 40 free throws in the game, compared with 25 for Sacramento. Pollard, now with the Boston Celtics, addressed the allegations before Game 3 on Tuesday. “If it was proven that it was — I don’t know how it could ever be proven that it was — that would hurt,” Pollard said. “That would hurt the league, it would hurt my feelings, it would hurt everybody. That’s ugly. You don’t want that to be true. I don’t want it to be found out that that was true. I would much rather live with human error than human interference.”

Stern’s dismissal? Please make the jump. Many thank yous.

Stern’s pregame statement? It reads like a page right out of the Clarence Thomas handbook. He stops short of the, “I categorically deny all allegations” line, but this was his pre-game pep talk to those of us who are paying attention.

“My reaction to Donaghy’s lawyer is that clearly as the date of sentencing gets closer and the things he’s thrown against the wall haven’t stuck, he’s rehashing a variety of things that have been given to the FBI, have been investigated and are baseless,” Stern told reporters.

“He’s a singing, cooperating witness trying to get as light a sentence as he can.”

Uh, okay. This I can believe. But he did, in fact, single out a particular game. One that I remember. And that is something that totally screwed over my viewing enjoyment of tonight’s game. Which, by the by, the Lakeshow took. In a foul-heavy home win. To keep the television revenues moving.

Apologies. I’m from Berkeley, home of the conspiracy theory. But Dave. C’mon. Even off the record, you’ve got to come stronger to the tin than that. Right? Don’t you have some counterevidence from any of the other refs who worked game six of Lakers vs. Kings in 2002? For the love of God and basketball, you’re a lawyer. Step to the bench and make the case.

Your public awaits. As does game four on Thursday.

Turman

PS. Rondo had this to say.