NBA advocating for civility on the court
League proposes 5-step plan to smooth tensions between officials and players
MIAMI Kevin Durant was steaming mad over officiating this week, then eventually apologized after realizing he could have better handled his frustrations.
The NBA hopes all players and referees take the time for such reflection.
The league introduced a fivepronged plan Friday to try to improve how players and referees get along during games. It comes during a season where one of the storylines has been the ongoing deterioration of the relationship between the sides, with stars such as Durant, LeBron James and Chris Paul not shy about expressing their frustrations.
“What we’ve basically done is taken a bit of a step back,” said Byron Spruell, NBA president of league operations. “It’s kind of been a cumulative effect that’s been going on throughout the course of the season. We feel like frustration is high and tensions are high, so we want to address it, frankly.”
The league’s plan comes less than a month before the players and referees are set to meet in Los Angeles during All-Star weekend, with hopes of finding common ground. The NBA clearly wants to see more civility — and soon.
“Time is of the essence,” said former referee Monty McCutchen, now an NBA vice-president overseeing referee development and training.
McCutchen and Michelle Johnson, NBA senior vice-president overseeing referee operations, will be among those starting to meet with teams in the coming days, one of the five steps in the plan:
Discussing rules interpretations,
■ on-court conduct and the expectations of NBA referees with all clubs.
A re-emphasis of the NBA’s
■ Respect for the Game rules, not just for players but also coaches and referees, with hopes of more consistent enforcement of violations.
Expansion of rules education
■
by the NBA referee operations department for coaches, players and team personnel to provide better clarity of rules.
Enhanced training for referees
■
on conflict resolution. Johnson and McCutchen will conduct that training and will more closely scrutinize on-court interactions to make sure referees are handling things consistent with league policy.
An additional reliance on the ■
NBA’s officiating advisory council, which will be tasked with getting all parts of the league more involved in finding solutions.
“That nature of public discourse these days is a bit rough,” Johnson said. Over the course of the season, as the chippiness has gone on, we say there’s no time like the present to not just communicate with the referee staff but to talk with teams.”
There has been no shortage of ugliness in player-referee exchanges this season.
James was ejected from a game for the first time. Paul, the president of the National Basketball Players Association, publicly aired his complaint about longtime referee Scott Foster giving him a technical foul by saying “Scott Foster at his finest . ... That’s who they pay to see.” Draymond Green told The Athletic this month that referees are “ruining the game.”
McCutchen said it’s critical the sides learn how to agree to disagree in more situations, and stop expecting perfection. Seeing Durant own up to his actions gave McCutchen hope that the relationship can be saved.